Secret
by Dixongurl
Summary: After her kidnapping, Beth tries to cope with the new world order and the dangers that arise with it. Including the protection of her unborn child. (Follow this story from the moment Beth wakes up in Grady, until they arrive in Alexandria)
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone, so I'm re-writing Secret (to a degree) because I did something silly and now I'm regretting it. It will be really different then the first Secret, but it'll be the same concept and I'll probably add in a lot of stuff that I wrote in the last story, only this time it'll be better. I really do hope you enjoy! More notes at the end.**

...

_"Keep singin'."_

_"I thought my singin' annoyed you?" She asked._

_He laid back in the coffin and shrugged a little." Well, there ain't no juke box so.." He looked over at her almost waiting for her to continue._

_She turned back around facing the piano all while wondering what had gotten into him, she saw a big difference in attitude and he even seemed less tense._

_Daryl watched her play the piano - fingers moving delicately over the keys, he couldn't help but stare. Then her voice. Her voice soft and melodic, and it was putting him to sleep. She definitely had talent unlike he imagined. Or led himself to believe. He turned and looked up at the ceiling wondering what would have happened if he wasn't there when she ran out of the prison, would she of survived? He didn't want to seem soft or mushy gushy, but, he was glad that he was standing there when she ran out. _

She woke up in a haze, or at least it seemed. Her eyes hurt from the direct sunlight filtering in and her head felt fuzzy, _was she__ in heaven?_ Blinking a few times the haze cleared and she could see - she was in a room. A white room with white floors, the walls were plain as day; not even a picture.

There was a window to her right and she noted that's where the light was coming in from, a sharp pain in her wrist brought her to reality. Her reality. She looked down and noticed a cast.

Confused and feeling fatigued she sat up slowly, she looked around the room taking in all the medical equipment that sat next to her bedside. She rubbed her wrist a little as she tried figuring where she could be, _was Daryl here too? _

Without much hesitation or a second thought she threw the covers off of her and stepped down on to the cool floor, She wobbled a bit upon standing but gripped the bed for support as she hurried over to the door with fear finally hitting her.

With clenched fists she hit the wooden door, she even tried opening it after she hit it a few times, but it was locked. Frustrated as she was she called out for help, but it sounded more like a cry for help as her panic began bubbling to the surface. She sometimes let her emotions get the best of her.

The sound of keys jiggling on the other side not a minute later prompted her to back away and very quickly, she yanked the needle out from her arm and held it between her fingers, it wasn't much but it gave her the satisfaction that she had something to protect herself with even if it didn't do any damage.

The door swung open and a dark haired woman in a police uniform entered the room, and behind her walked in a Doctor holding a clipboard. Beth swallowed and gripped the pole that held her IV bag.

"Drop it.. Right now." The woman commanded.

Beth obliged letting the needle fall to the ground and she honestly couldn't figure out why she even listened, she watched as the dark haired woman gripped her belt of weapons. She eyed it carefully. But not to be too suspicious at least to the cop, she looked back up slowly and finally over to the Doctor, who was already staring.

"Do you remember your name?" he asked.

"Beth...Where am I?"

He fixed his glasses." Grady... Memorial."

Beth inhaled sharply." Why am I here?" She felt as if they were undoubtedly leaving something important out.

"My men found you on the side of the road, walkers surrounding you." The woman said.

Beth bit her cheek until she tasted some blood, feeling alone and _being_ alone scared her more then all the walkers she could ever face. She looked back up at the Doctor, then to the woman - her eyes beginning to water some with the next question that sat on the tip of her tongue.

"The man I was with... Is he here too?"

The woman tilted her head to the side with a small shake." You were alone, there was no one with you."

She could feel her heart slip into her stomach, the bile in the back of her throat burning as it began surfacing. _She was alone? _Surely they were mistaking, she remembered clearly that she was with Daryl in a funeral home, it was getting over run with walkers and he yelled for her to get out and that he'd meet her up at the end of the road. He promised her.

"There's one other thing." The Doctor said turning back into her room.

Swallowing the lump in the back of her throat she nodded faintly as she prepped herself for what was about to be said, He sighed and cleared his throat almost like he was buying himself some time, She'd seen this before with Jimmy, Zach...and Daryl.

"You're pregnant." He said with an exhale." And five weeks to be exact."

But, prepping herself wasn't enough for the news she just received. Her breath hitched in her throat preventing her from speaking, he didn't say much more to her after that, he just left the room leaving the dark haired woman behind with her. Beth looked down at the white tiles blinking away the shock, _pregnant. _And five weeks at that. It was hard to fathom if she was being honest with herself. She always wanted a child, but that was before.

The woman walked over to Beth handing her sea foam green scrubs and a pair of sneakers that had balled up socks inside, Beth looked up at the woman and noticed how intense her eyes were, there was nothing behind them.

"Get dressed.. Make your bed, then come out to the front desk." She said before leaving the room.

Beth exhaled a shaky breath and turned towards her bed, she placed the scrubs at the foot then walked over to the window that over looked the city. She gasped slightly seeing how destroyed it truly was, far different from what she remembered or was used too. Over grown trees that she imagined used to be well kept, broken windows even in the tallest of buildings, litter and darkness clogged the streets. She didn't exactly expect a fairytale, but, she didn't expect this either.

With the city in shambles and probably filled with the dead, it then hit her like a ton of bricks. Trying to leave this place would be that much harder when she was able to, she must've been crazy to want to leave an environment where they have beds and clean sheets and bathrooms in every room, but she knew from spending months out there that she was more suited for the outdoors than she once thought. Inside she felt so out of place and around people she didn't know and didn't feel comfortable with.

When she was out there she knew how to survive, it came as second nature to her. And when she was around walkers she knew what to do, but around people especially people she didn't know, that's when she didn't know what to do. They were more dangerous at times and could turn in an instant, you didn't know if they'd become your friend or enemy.

She looked down at the cast on her wrist and sighed, she never had a sprained anything except for her ankle. It seemed like this year was a year of firsts for her, she slowly turned away from the window looking back at her clothes that were neatly folded on her bed.

_Her new clothes. _

_..._

_She looked at Daryl wondering why he wasn't saying what changed his mind, he was acting strange far worse than earlier.. She'd seen him at his worst and at his best, but now she didn't know what she was seeing._

_"Don't I'unno." She rolled her eyes as she mocked him playfully." What changed your mind?"_

_He looked up at her as he took a spoonful of jelly, he blinked slowly as he couldn't do much else, He didn't know what was happening, but he liked it. _

_"Oh." She replied and her smile disappearing into a soft thin line._

After Beth pulled her hair into a ponytail not bothering to put a braid in like she normally does, she walked out of the bathroom her mind still fresh with the memory of her and Daryl. She knew now that he was having trouble with his feelings. And she felt guilty that she didn't _get_ it sooner.

"Oh good, You're dressed."

Startled; she jumped slightly and looked up seeing the Doctor sitting on the edge of her bed, she looked back down paying no mind to him at the moment. She shut the door quietly behind her and walked over to her bed, it was weird having him already in her room. _What was he up to? Why was he even in here?_

He stood up quickly so she could make her bed."I'm Doctor Edwards, by the way. We really didn't have much a chance for introductions earlier."

"You're an actual Doctor?"

He laughed lightly." Well, yes of course. I was actually working here and on the day that everything went to hell."

Beth nodded as she folded back her sheet, out of the corner of her eye she saw Edwards standing there watching her. She shook her head slightly from side to side, she pulled the white sheet that laid at the foot of the bed up half way then folded it back. She did just how her mother used too.

"Um, That man you mentioned earlier, He is the father I assume?"

Beth looked up at him briefly then looked back down, she didn't really give a yes or no she sort of ignored the question all together or tried, and only because it hurt speaking about Daryl. That wound was still fresh. She knew that he most likely thought she was dead, and really how could she blame him? It bothered her a lot, but, she was always dubbed as the weak one and he knew it too. Sure she proved herself a little with some things, but anyone would have done the same thing.

He was alive though because he will always be, He will always be the last man standing - as she told him that once in a house that they drank moonshine in and later burned it down, it was her first time drinking...Among other things as well, but she told him that he would be the last man standing and not to be mean, but only because he was built for this world and she saw that.

"We'll take care of you, we have a good staff here at Grady."

"Beth sighed." I was fine before."

Doctor Edwards nodded and opened his mouth to speak but ultimately chose not to, he turned slowly after giving a nod and a sympathetic smile. Beth looked up just as he walked out of her room. He left the door open and she could feel a breeze coming in from the hallway, she also heard chatter coming in as well. Meaning that there were indeed others.

She slowly inched her way out of the room feeling like her new surroundings were closing in on her, she rubbed her arms but stopped as her cast scratched her skin leaving little white lines down her forearm. She looked around the place only noticing one picture frame hanging in the hallway, it was an over look of Atlanta...Or what used to be.

_Always trust your gut feeling, because it's always right. It'll never steer you wrong._

Beth heard her father's voice playing in her head and honestly she couldn't ignore it, her gut feeling was telling her that this place was shady. And like her Daddy said she should trust it and so she would.

Up ahead at the front desk was Doctor Edwards and an older gentleman, he looked as if to be in his late sixties early seventies what with his white hair and beard to match. He almost reminded her of her father, but he was a far cry from her Daddy. This man resembled more of Santa Clause.

Doctor Edwards looked up from his clipboard and gave Beth a nod." I need you for a second."

"For what?" Beth asked feeling a bit jumpy.

He put the clipboard down on the desk and walked down a narrow hallway, Beth stood there watching him unsure of what he needed. He turned around and motioned for Beth to follow.

Hesitating, Beth nodded and walked down the narrow hallway to meet up with him, and she couldn't help eyeing the police woman behind the desk. Although it wasn't the same woman that came into her room earlier, she couldn't help but feel the same way.

There was a medium size room off to the left that he walked into, and it looked to Beth like an old waiting room due to the soda machine's and countless empty magazine racks. There were a set of double doors up ahead just passed the bathroom that was on her right, it seemed to lead into another hallway. Beth continued following Edwards starting to feel a bit nervous now, he didn't _feel_ like a threat to her.

"We lost a patient today." He finally spoke breaking the unnerving silence.

"How do you lose someone here?"

"Overdose." He replied simply as if it were no big deal, as if at one point it was something they all do.

Beth narrowed her eyes at the man." An' what exactly do you need me for?"

He smiled at her question as he fished out his key from his pocket, she watched- waiting for an answer as he had a rough time unlocking and opening the door. She watched as he jiggled the brass knob a few times before it finally opened for him, it was a small utility closet that he stepped into. it was filled with various cleaning supplies.

When he stepped back out he handed Beth a white sheet that was folded neatly with perfect creases, she looked up at Edwards.

"What's this for?"

"We don't like the others seeing what their peers look like, ultimately what they'll look like when death occurs."

Even though Beth was suspicious she followed him anyways, which was probably not the best idea since her gut was screaming at her to turn back around. The way he spoke, the way he acted seemed as if Beth were already apart of the community and that was starting to bother her. She didn't want to be apart of anything, she wanted to just leave.

"The west wing." He announced as they went through the double doors.

It was very clean and a lot less crowded - almost empty for that matter. She followed him into a bigger room, it seemed similar to hers but there was a sizable difference. A male patient lay on a bed in the same scrubs as Beth and the lady next to him, he was young Beth noted, probably a little older then her. His face and hands were pale almost as white as the sheet she was holding, he had a puncture wound in his head and she knew that they had already put him out, at least she didn't have to see that.

Doctor Edwards took the sheet out of Beth's hands and opened it up, he shook it a bit and for what reason Beth was uncertain. It was cleaner than anything she'd ever seen, even before the turn none of her towels or blankets came out as clean or as perfectly folded as this sheet was. She shook her head. The woman next to the bed held a piece of paper in her hands with a bunch of scribbles in her hand, Beth squinted hoping to read it but failed tremendously.

"Time of Death, 4:10." The woman spoke softly.. Almost too soft, even for Beth.

Edwards started scribbling down something on the clipboard that he carried, Beth was wondering if he even heard but now she knew. She wondered how they even kept time, or the day or month. It didn't really feel that important, before it was all Beth ever was. Keeping track of pep rallies and school dances, sleepovers with her friend's, school assignments etc.

"I'll need help wheeling the gurney."

Beth nodded and did as she was told, she helped him guide the gurney through the door frame so it wouldn't scratch. He mentioned religiously how Dawn would be upset if they did scratch the finish.

"I do appreciate this." He said as they made their way down the hallway.

Beth looked back at him." Why am I even doin' this?"

He sighed." Dawn assigns everyone jobs, if you do them right and the first time, you won't have any problems with her. You don't and you'll have problems." he cleared his throat." Consequences.."

Beth pushed open the double doors for him." Consequences? Even for you?"

He chuckled." No, I usually do what she tells me to do. She's been right more times than I'd like to count."

She nodded wearily as they neared an elevator shaft, nothing seemed to add up. _Why was she here? What did they need her for? And why was Dawn this way?_

"We throw them down the shaft, it's easier than taking our chances outside trying to burn them."

"They should have a proper burial." She commented as Doctor Edwards lifted the gurney, she watched the once young man fall down the shaft and her stomach lurched into her throat - suddenly wanting to hurl. She couldn't imagine the bodies that resided down there and she didn't even want to start, she looked back at Doctor Edwards who instead of looking remorseful, just gave Beth a sheepish smile. But it seemed like an act.

"I'm sure Dawn has more work for you." he said pulling the gurney away from the elevator." Better hurry."

...

_Doctor Edwards was right_ she thought, Dawn had assigned her to laundry duty with a younger guy maybe about her age maybe a little older, his name was Noah. He was nice and had a great sense of humor, he even made a few jokes that made her smile despite the situation. She had hoped that he didn't feel obligated to do this, she didn't want special treatment.

While they'd been working Noah briefed her in on a little with what this place is and how long it's been up and running and what they do, she was having a hard time with this place before and even more so now.

As she folded some scrubs she wondered how she would even begin to tell Daryl about the baby or how she and he would explain to Maggie and the others, it was just something that happened in all of their anger and fighting. It happened and as soon as it happened there was a change, in both of them. They seemed happier and even relaxed, they were both able to accept the fact that their home was destroyed and that their family may or may not be gone and that there wasn't much they could do.

"So you're pregnant?" Noah finally asked.

She turned around - hair flinging from one side to the other." How'd you know that?"

He shrugged." Word gets around pretty fast...Least here it does."

Sighing with the last statement, Beth turned back to the scrubs that she just folded. Subconsciously she begun picking the lint or in her case lack of off the green material, it was something she did when she was nervous. This time she hoped it would just distract her from the fact that they all know her _situation. _

"You don't have to worry about me, I ain't like them."

Beth cracked a smile." You are funny.. Not like them."

He shook his head." No, no they aren't. Edwards joke's around sometimes, but the rest of them they don't do that."

"Why?"

"Cause they feel that if we all joke around and shoot the breeze, we're not doing our jobs we're slackers. And that's something Dawn doesn't approve of, she needs every job at least half way done before dinner time."

She swallowed as she folded a shirt, Noah turned back and continued ironing a pair of pants that she'd have to fold next. Joking seemed like a nod to the old world that Noah had down pat, it still puzzled her as to why they wouldn't allow it. Occasionally joking and relaxing would be a nice change to the atmosphere. Beth liked that Noah went out of his way to make other people laugh with a simple joke, not many people could do that.

"So are you from around here?"

"Richmond, actually."

She turned around leaning her hip against the metal table."What're you doin' here then?"

He shrugged and glanced down." They say they found me hurt and on the side of the road."He pulled up his leg revealing a large indent in his leg-a former gash."That was a year ago though."

"A year?" A year was too long. She didn't even want to be here over night. Fear crept over her that they'd try to keep her here like they did Noah, she feared that they'd try to keep her from leaving when she was able.

"Yeah, but time flies by. After a while you don't even know."

Beth turned around and took from the pile of scrubs, she was speechless. How could he be so accepting of where he was? Why _was_ he so accepting of where he was? She could never accept it, and she wouldn't. How could she knowing that her family was still out there, knowing the last thing Daryl ever saw of her was her running through the kitchen after promising she'd never leave him.

Once she got out though, what tracking skills she did learn from Daryl she'd to her advantage. Granted she wasn't the greatest at it, but she knew what little she did know would definitely go a long way.

It would definitely be tough now that she is pregnant, she wouldn't have any medical treatment or vitamins. But she knew she'd be okay if she made sure that she ate, drank and slept when she was supposed to. Anything to get out of Grady.

"He doesn't even know."

"Who?" Noah asked.

Beth swallowed and looked down." Daryl.. About the baby."

"You didn't tell him?"

"No, I didn't even know I was pregnant." She placed the folded pants in the pant pile." I wasn't even havin' any symptoms, except bein' light headed. I just thought that was from not eating like I should have."

Noah placed his hand on Beth's shoulder, she turned around trying to force a smile.

"You'll be alright. You'll get outta here soon."

Wanting to ask how he knew such a thing, She looked back up at him as he stared down at her. She no sooner opened her mouth to speak when the door opened and Dawn walked in. Noah's hand slowly retracted from her shoulder, almost like they were caught doing something they shouldn't.

"Noah, out." She demanded.

He obliged and walked out giving Beth a slight nod before Dawn slammed the door shutting him out, Beth stiffened with her sudden outburst. _What did they do? What did she do? _She continued folding the shirt that was still in her hands, she told herself she was going to avoid Dawn's icy gaze so she didn't get too upset.

"Did Noah explain that while you're working, there is to be no speaking?"

She hoped the woman wasn't serious, but she remembered what Noah said." Talking makes time go by faster."

"I don't think you understand, Beth. This is not leisure time, this is a time to get things done." She stepped a bit closer to Beth." I don't think you realize what it took to save you and your baby, you almost died if it weren't for my men finding you."

"I didn't need any of your help. I was with someone."

Dawn stared at her and honestly Beth was on edge, she didn't seem like a stable person.

"We don't let anyone die here, we use all of what we have to save them. You and your baby were our priority, we needed to save you and we did...And now you owe us." She stormed out of the room slamming the door shut behind her.

Noah walked back inside a few minutes later, he was quiet oddly enough. He didn't speak to Beth but his presence made things feel calmer, Beth didn't speak to him either, what would they have to say? They decided quickly that it was right for both to just work together in silence until their shift was over.

_"Ima give that mutt one more chance." Daryl said as he grabbed the jar of pigs feet._

_Beth sighed a little not really wanting him to go or for that matter to stop their conversation, she watched as he stood up disappearing into the hallway. She looked down at her letter and began crumpling it up just as Daryl called out for her, she jumped to her feet and grabbed his crossbow._

_"BETH!"_

_She hurried to the door frame and peered out, he stood there against the door holding it with all of his body weight while walkers tried to enter from the outside. She tossed him his crossbow and watched as he pushed off the door and hurried towards the basement stairs._

_"Beth, get yer shit an' go out a window!" He yelled._

_"I'm not gonna leave you!"_

_"Go up the road, I'll meet you!" _

_..._

**I hope you enjoyed. As I said It's very different, but I'm still going to take some of what I had and write it into this new and improved Secret. **

**Now I will explain myself a bit, The reason I deleted Secret is because I was having a very rough time in my personal life and I got some not so fun messages which at the time I took badly. But, as I went over Secret I realized that they were right. So in order to make up for deleting it, I re-wrote it but with a different story...Sorta kinda.**

**Anyways, I will ask for many reviews to wake up to because I do plan on continuing this story for a while and NO I won't delete this one. That's a promise! Reviews will definitely make me want to write more and quicker that I can assure you my lovelies :D **

**So please review away!**

**XoXo**


	2. Chapter 2

**So far so good! I really appreciate the reviews, they mean a lot. I do realize that there were some grammar mistakes as someone pointed out, I will say that it was not my intention. Sometimes I don't see them or catch them because I've gone over everything so many times and my brain doesn't want to pay attention to the small details, so if you happen to catch mistakes please message me and I'll see if I can fix it. If not I'll be sure to be on monster patrol next chapter. But I do appreciate the helpful criticism :D **

**Now onward with the chapter!**

**...**

Beth finally had the chance to shower early in the morning before her day started, it kind of reminded her of when she used to get up for school, it felt great washing away the dirt and grime and to actually make herself look halfway presentable. But she didn't mind being dirty, it became a part of her. But with a leader such as Dawn it was a must to be clean and to have _everything_ be clean.

It was her second day at Grady memorial and she was already being treated like their own, the only reason she was still there was because they wouldn't let her until she was "better". She was fine, more than perfect, but they apparently had a different definition of fine. She laid a hand over her stomach finally acknowledging the very young fetus within her, swallowing a lump in her throat she looked in the mirror trying to picture what she'd look like with a round full stomach. It didn't seem possible that she could grow, she barely ate as it is and while she was on the road she lost a lot of weight, more than she probably should've.

She could have eaten some food last night along with the others, but an officer named Gorman made a pass at her, it bothered her enough to not eat. But, before bed last night Noah had brought her some food, which consisted of potatoes, celery, corn, and beans. It wasn't really appetizing, but it did the trick of filling her up. She just pretended it was her daddy's famous roast beef.

As the sun began to rise slowly over the horizon showing itself in the broken glass of the tall building across the way, Beth heaved a sigh. She felt a little sick and she wasn't sure if it was morning sickness or the fact that she didn't belong here in such a place or that she couldn't just pick up and leave as she pleased. She wasn't as stupid as they depicted her to be, they wanted her here for something, because she _owed _them.

"Hey."

Beth turned quickly to see Noah peering into her room, she smiled and subconsciously brushed a piece of hair behind her ear. It was a habit she formed when she was around new people.

"I uh knocked twice, you didn't answer and I thought you were asleep."

She shook her head." No I wasn't, I can't really sleep anymore."

He nodded in agreement.

"So, what's our job for today?" She asked with a sigh.

"Cleanup."

"What's that consist of?"

Noah shrugged." Guess we'll find out."

"Right." Beth nodded. She had forgotten that they assign jobs every week, this would be her first rotation as she just showed up a day ago.

The walk down to the cafeteria was shorter then Beth anticipated, she wished her and Noah had more time to talk, but, Dawn didn't approve of it because in her eyes it was considered "slacking". When they got there in the cafeteria they were immediately summoned over by the other wards, who were all standing in small groups of their own.

As she stood there in a small group with Noah and some of the other wards, Beth noticed the roof top of the hospital out of a window that was behind Dawn, She wondered if there was a way out to the roof? If there was she figured she could get out that way and they'd never know, and there was almost always a fire escape.

"Beth!" Dawn chided.

She jumped and blinked a few times, feeling heat rush to her cheeks. She felt so small as everyone stared at her." S-Sorry."

Dawn sighed as she scribbled down something on a notepad." You're mopping today until five, there are a lot of places that are in dire need for cleaning, so be sure to focus on them. Joan will tell you where. You will get 3 breaks, five minutes long. Don't go over."

Beth nodded and cautiously walked over to a woman with wild curly brown hair - Joan, at least she would have someone to talk to she guessed... Or hoped, not everyone was friendly at this place. Beth was lucky with Noah, he seemed as if he only one.

Joan thrust a mop in Beth's direction, she frowned feeling like she was lost, she felt as if she wanted to run and hide. She slowly took the mop in her hands and picked up the bucket and began following Joan, as they walked down the hall Beth happened to look over at the woman and almost immediately noticed a scratch on Joan's neck just under a large curl, it wasn't a typical scratch either. It was dark red and the skin around it seemed inflamed. She wouldn't ask though because it was none of her business, but she'd be lying is she said that she wasn't curious.

"You gonna try and escape too?"

Beth arched an eyebrow." Um, excuse me?"

Joan smiled." Everyone tries, nobody succeeds though. I heard you was pregnant, best not be trying anything stupid if you want that baby to live."

Beth bit her lip." What do you mean they never succeed?"

"Everyone who tries, get's caught. Simple logic princess."

"What happens when they get caught?"

Joan wrung out her mop." Dawn deals with you."

Beth didn't like the sound of that, _Dawn deals with you. _What did she actually do to these people? She knew for certain that she didn't want to find out, inhaling sharply Beth began pouring ammonia into the bucket, when there was enough in the dark green bucket she exhaled. Joan walked over practically pushing her out of the way, she waved her hand for Beth to move then took her bucket and began filling it with water.

"How do you deal with that smell?" Beth asked as she covered her nose." I mean, doesn't it make you sick?"

Joan laughed." Been on mop duty for too long." She handed Beth her bucket that was half filled with Luke warm water." Get started princess or Dawn with have your hide for lunch."

She nodded and dipped her mop into the water, she swirled it around then wrung it out. The wooden handle pricked her hands as she started mopping the surrounding area. She could already feel her back aching from the motions, she'd never really been subjected to this much work before. Back on the farm they'd have scheduled days for what the house needed.

"You know, I've been here for about eight months and not once have I seen a pregnant woman. I don't know whether to consider myself lucky or not."

Beth looked up at the woman and gave a forced smile at her attempt to make conversation, but, it wasn't helping any to calm Beth's nerves. She was already on edge as she was for the past day and a half, and hearing how she's possibly the first pregnant woman at Grady just made her want to cry.

"Don't worry princess, this is all new to them they aren't gonna do anything stupid to mess that up...not yet anyways."

"Yet?" Beth questioned the last part because she mumbled it with such a mocking tone, almost like she knew of something.

Joan ignored her question though and continued mopping her section, Beth frowned and moved away from the woman as she focused on the entrance to the bathrooms. Beth hoped she was one of those people who said stuff but didn't realize the impact until later, she also hoped that she wasn't trying to scare her on purpose. But, mostly she hoped she just made a mistake, either way what she said made Beth more uncomfortable then she was this morning, she stopped briefly to give her back a break but she found her hand immediately going to her stomach. It gave her the inner peace that she had been longing for, but only for a minute before she had to get back to work.

...

Around noon Beth finally got her first break, she felt as if her bladder was about to explode. They'd been so busy that she had to hold it all morning. She didn't appreciate that she couldn't go to the bathroom until her break, it was bad enough that she had a small bladder and now being pregnant, it was far worse then before. Joan promised Beth that Dawn would find out and get angry.

As she washed her hands in the warm soapy water she wondered if she could get a pass somehow to use the bathroom when she could, but, Dawn being the person she was stopped Beth from asking that question. She didn't want to risk it. She would however try asking Edwards, maybe it'd be safer. After all he was a Doctor, he understood the consequences of not using the bathroom as needed. He could possibly talk Dawn into the idea.

She walked out and grabbed her mop that laid against the wall, Joan was waiting - leaning against the opposite wall picking at her nails, Beth rolled her eyes as she cleaned off her mop in the dirty brown water. Joan walked past her into the bathroom, creating a breeze that cooled Beth down and left her wanting more.

While Joan used the bathroom, Beth took some time to think about an escape. She'd have to get more information out from Edwards, he seemed open enough to let something slip accidently... She hoped at least.

Beth stood up straight holding her lower back, her chest rose and fell with each breath she took. It seemed easier for her to take deep breaths as it momentarily took the ache away. She heard the toilet flush, then the stall door slam shut and the squish of Joan's sneakers as she walked out.

"You okay princess?"

Beth glanced behind her and gave a nod." Just enjoyin' one of the perks of bein' pregnant, I guess."

"I wouldn't know, never had any kids."

"No?" She questioned curiously.

Joan looked up from the bucket, she blew out a breath; wild strands of hair flying up and out of her eyes." My husband couldn't, he had gotten sick in his early twenties and..." She shrugged." Lost all ability, but I think that was just his excuse."

Beth blinked a few times as she watched a different side of Joan, a softer side - she seemed bothered that she didn't have any children. Beth looked down.

"After he died, I just... I hoped I could start over ya know?" She looked at the opposite wall." But then shit got crazy, the epidemic happened and all this. Seemed kinda pointless afterwards."

"It's never pointless."

Joan snickered." Yeah it is, we're all gonna die."

"We always lived to die, nothin's changed." Beth's voice cracked a bit, she felt like she was berating her for having a child. She looked back up." We can't be afraid to live."

The curly haired woman stared at Beth for a long minute, she finally looked down and nodded a few times." Wow...That's... Deep." She paused." You're wise." Joan commented." Don't change." She stood up after wringing out her mop, she repeated her last statement over and over again as she strolled down the hallway.

Beth watched her unsure of why she continued repeating it, she felt it was kind of weird.. But then again not everyone was as sane as they once were. If ever they were.

...

When shift was over Beth helped Joan quickly clean up the utility room before she left in hopes to find Doctor Edwards, Noah had mentioned where it was but she forgot, or she was to busy wallowing in her self pity to listen closely.

As she neared she saw the door open to the laundry room, peering inside she saw Noah with his back to the door folding towels. He was still assigned to laundry duty, she guessed Dawn didn't want to change that. She knocked quietly on the door frame and he turned around quickly and gave a relieved smile when he saw it was just Beth.

"Hey."

Beth smiled." Hey." She replied as she moved into the room, she grasped the door knob ready to close it, when Noah grabbed her wrist - startling her some she backed away.

"Dawn want's it open."

Beth sighed and looked up at Noah." I have to see Edwards, where's his room again?"

"Oh." He moved away from Beth and peered out of the room." Go left.."

She nodded and moved closer so he didn't have to speak too loud...Well louder than he already was.

"His door is the blue one on the left."

"He is close." She smiled.

He breathed a laugh and turned back around to the ironing board, Beth snuck one more glance at him before walking out into the hall, she quickly made it to the end which was nearby and looked left then right. It was eerily quiet and unusually empty, She took a deep breath before she slowly made her way down the hallway keeping close to the wall. She heard the faint sound of music and before she knew it a smile had formed on her face, it'd been so long since she had heard music. Her body reacted when it heard music, her face lit up and her vocal cords begged her to sing.

She walked up to the door and knocked quietly, she looked around as she waited. The last thing she needed was to be caught, there was after all a curfew. She heard glass clank together and her heart beat faster, footsteps quickened as they made their way to the door; she swallowed.

The door swung open and Doctor Edwards who was surprisingly in normal street clothes, looked shocked to see her.

"Beth." He fixed his glasses." Is everything okay?"

She nodded." Can we talk a minute?"

He cleared his throat and opened the door." Uh sure, come in." He held out his hand.

Walking into his office was a surprise to Beth, she immediately began admiring the pictures hanging on the wall and paintings propped up on shelves and against the wall, she turned back to Edwards who was standing with his hands in his coat pockets.

"This is where all the pictures are."

He chuckled." Yes, you like art?"

"Very much." She replied eagerly.

He shut the door and walked over to his desk, Beth watched as his white coat flung around as he sped back over to his desk, her forehead scrunched up as she noted he was in a hurry, or maybe that was just him. She didn't know. He motioned for Beth to sit down as he did.

"My first piece was Monet, it was my Grandmother's and I was instantly hooked."

She smiled and looked around his desk her eyes landing on the Styrofoam container sitting off to the side of him, inside was a glorious sight. Meat, mashed potatoes and corn. She looked back up careful to not let on how hungry she truly was, but he was drinking a bottle of water so he hadn't noticed her wandering eyes. She did however notice a bottle of schnapps next to the type writer, and suddenly visions of the house her and Daryl stayed in drinking moonshine flooded her vision, blocking almost everything else.

"So." He twisted the cap back on the bottle." To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Beth looked up breaking away from her thoughts, she smiled away the blush that crept up on her face. She hoped he hadn't caught her zoning out.

"I was wondering if I could get more breaks, like bathroom breaks?"

Edwards nodded." I don't see why not."

"Thank you." Beth said as she began to feel... cheery, light even. The walk to his office was weighing heavy on her shoulders.

He leaned back in his chair folding his arms." How're you feeling?"

"Still in shock." She looked down at her hands." I never expected to be pregnant." she glanced over at the meat and her stomach rumbled in response.

"Have you ever tried guinea pig?"

She shook her head with a scrunch of the nose." No."

Edwards laughed a little." It's actually very good, tastes like pork." He picked a piece up with the white plastic fork and handed it over to Beth, she made a face as she plucked the fork from his fingers.

She pulled the meat off the fork and handed it back to him as she popped the meat into her mouth, surprisingly Edwards wasn't lying. It did taste like pork and it melted in her mouth, there was a hint of something else as well, it was something that she'd try once but would most definitely never eat again.

"So, bathroom breaks for Beth as needed." Edwards spoke aloud as he scribbled in his notepad.

"Um I was also wondering if I could stay on laundry duty, my back isn't really Co-operating much with mopping and pickin' up trash."

Edwards looked up from his pad and adjusted his glasses, a habit Beth was beginning to take notice of." I don't assign jobs Beth, Dawn is the head of that department." He seemed frustrated as he spoke of her being the head of assigning jobs.

Her lips pursed into a thin line."I know, I was just wondering if..you could-"

"Put the word in?"

"Yes." Beth breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'll see what I can do, but for the time being do what you've been assigned, I'll give you some low dosage Ibuprofen for your back."

And with that she gave a nod and stood up ready to leave when Edward's held up his hand, Beth paused and he stood up." You can stay awhile." he cleared his throat." If you'd like?"

She nodded and sat back down feeling oddly relaxed, something about Doctor Edwards made her feel calm. He wasn't Dawn or the other officers or even the other wards, he was someone who had a lot of character, someone who she wouldn't mind getting to know a little. The shear fact that he was wiling to risk everything, just to ask Dawn if she could do laundry duty instead was enough for Beth to realize he was a good person. Her stomach grumbled as she settled back into the chair, she eyed the meat but wouldn't be a glutton and ask for more.

"Have you heard of Etta James?"

"I have." Beth beamed with the conversation shifting into music, finally something she was comfortable with. Back at the prison when things were tense, she would read books about music that Maggie had picked up for her, or she'd turn poems she wrote into songs. It took her stress away.

He smiled." You sing?"

"Yes.. I still sing."

"I love Etta's voice, makes me forget about the world on a boring day."

Confused, Beth arched an eyebrow." Bored?"

He nodded as he sat back down in his chair." Well yeah, things can get boring around here."

"If you can feel bored, you're lucky."

Edwards snickered as he put the record on, Beth watched as he carefully put the needle on the thin line that was of the song. Soon after the song began.

"I remember my wife and I used to dance to this song some nights, like when it'd rain and there was nothing to do." he smiled as he stared at the painting." My wife always loved this painting, she said it reminded her of her mother and aunts when they played canasta." he boasted.

"It's very unique." Beth commented as she watched him admire the picture, he seemed elated." What was your wife's name?"

Edwards glanced over at Beth." Jane... Jane Marie, but everyone called her Janie."

She knew something tragic happened, she could feel it in her bones and by the way he spoke about her. She wouldn't ask and she knew she'd never know what had happened to his wife, maybe she was better off not knowing. She sat back in the chair and looked over at the cast that wrapped around her hand and wrist, she hated how nobody would tell her what happened to her wrist. The last thing she remembered was she was fighting off a walker and then everything went black, before she was fighting off a walker everything was fine - no sprained wrist, no cut on her face.

Chewing on her lip she contemplated on what to say next, Edwards did seem to be in his own little world at the moment. She inhaled and exhaled feeling nerves tickle her insides, she was a lot more nervous then she'd ever been before, for what reason she wasn't sure."So what other jobs are there exactly?" she asked taking a shot and hoping to get an answer.

"Well." He sat up straight." There's gardening, cleaning duty, laundry duty, cooking duty, and making rounds with all of the patients."

Beth perked up; maybe doing rounds or gardening would be her calling." Could you ask Dawn about making rounds?"

He sighed." I'll make note of it, but please don't get your hopes up. The chances of Dawn switching jobs without it being the weekly rotation in slim to none, and even then she chooses."

Inhaling sharply and biting her lip, she stood up slowly pushing her seat out behind her." Thank you." She replied dryly before leaving his office.

She walked back out into the hallway - irritated. The laundry room door was shut and the light was off meaning Noah was done, she sighed with a shake of her head. She rounded a corner and ran into Officer Dawn who felt like a brick wall, Beth gasped upon impact. She held her chest and let her eyes rise to meet Dawn's, she looked annoyed but most of all curious as to what Beth was doing around this area. Beth swallowed.

"I was looking for more trash to pick up, sorry I know it's not my shift I just hate a mess." She had to think of something quick. That was the only thing she could think of that might've made Dawn less angry.

Dawn nodded slowly." It's past curfew."

"I was just tryin' to help out-"

"I know what you were trying to do, and you can stop. I will confine you to your room."

But she was wrong, it only made Dawn angrier for some reason.

Beth stared at her - furious- she bit her cheek for relief but it was doing more damage than good, she was hoping that her anger didn't show though. She couldn't get confined to her room and showing it would get her that punishment for sure. She walked away from Dawn who had turned around to watch where she went, Beth certainly didn't appreciate being babysat.

When Beth got to her room she shut the door behind and leaned against it with her eyes squeezed shut, she bit her lip as hard as she could before feeling pain, it was the only thing preventing her from screaming. And even then it barely did it's job.

She opened her eyes and moved over to her bed ready to climb inside and sleep when she immediately saw something green on her table, she walked over and saw a single green lollipop and suddenly all the anger, frustration and annoyance drained and a smile appeared on her face, she knew it was Noah. He talked so much about candy and how his favorite color was green. She sat down on her bed, quickly and quietly opening the candy. It was good to eat, and it was something she hadn't had in a long time. It was definitely a treat, and one that she had appreciated coming back to.

...

**Next chapter will probably be the stuff that they didn't show on the show, just my creations of what could've happened. Half of next chapter will be Daryl's POV, I think it's important to get his insight of things. **

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It took me three days to write, but partially because my laptop charger isn't working too well. So it went a few days uncharged :/ And partially because I'm still unpacking stuff so I haven't had much time to really sit down and write, but tonight I found some time! **

**Dawn and Grady Memorial are both going to be getting much worse within a chapter or two, there is no cutting corners with that. **

**Please review I love hearing what you have to say, I really do. You guys are really sweet and awesome, dedicated readers :D**

**Xoxo**


	3. Chapter 3

Daryl woke to the sound of Rick and Michonne speaking at the front of the truck, they found it abandoned on the side of the road with a couple of walkers inside. After they dismembered the walkers Daryl climbed in the back and fell into a deep dreamless sleep, and when he woke he felt unrested and achy. He sat up rubbing his face suddenly remembering the nights events and what two nights before held, sudden anger and guilt twisted in his gut.

Beth... She was _gone_.

He stepped out of the truck stretching out his aching limbs, Rick and Michonne stopped talking and Rick stepped forwards his face seemingly somber. Michonne leaned against the front of the truck with Carl as Rick walked over to him, Daryl really didn't want to talk to anyone.

"You're up." Rick began." How are you?"

Daryl looked up at Rick feeling dejected, he promised her that he'd meet her up the road. He kicked a stone that sat by his boot, it bounced to the other side of the road and up a small bank.

"Shit.." Daryl mumbled before settling against the truck. Rick settled just beside him almost sitting the same as him, Daryl inhaled sharply then exhaled, but the pain filled within him hitting him twice as hard.

"She dead?"

Daryl looked over at him water brimming his eyes, he leaned his head against the door of the truck biting his lip.

"She's just gone."

"What does that mean?"

Daryl blinked his eyes before finally closing them, he inhaled again feeling the pain in his bones and in his stomach." Means I let someone take her." He paused." A house we were at got overrun, I told her to go up the road...an' when I got there some car took off."

"What'd the car look like?"

"Black... white cross on the back."

Rick nodded." And you know she was inside for sure?"

"Her bag was on the ground. Shit that was inside was all over the place...They were struggling."

"We're gonna find her, but we need to come up with a plan first.. Cant go there blindfolded."

Daryl looked over at Rick, his smile was genuine and lighthearted. Like he meant that they would find her. There was no hesitation in Rick's voice, no pessimistic attitude. It made Daryl feel like there was still hope, that maybe it wasn't the end. Rick looked back over at Daryl not sure of what to say to someone especially Daryl who was so upset, they stared at each other for a minute before Rick cleared his throat to speak.

"You bein' here means a lot Daryl, you helping last night...You're family Daryl, my brother."

He looked down at his hands trying to mask his emotions, it was hard too especially for him. He gave a slight nod and his lips tugged up to one side as he forced the tears away.

"Where else would I be?" Truth was Daryl didn't know and he was hoping Rick would tell him, but the man didn't know either. He wanted to be with Beth, but right now he wasn't and he wasn't even sure he'd ever be again. That realization broke him harder then losing his brother, yeah he was his brother but he was an asshole and he'd done a lot to deserve his death in the end, he was high strung and out of control. But, Daryl was able to find him and end it. He was able to close that door in his life and for one split second he felt that maybe he was given a second chance to do things right, like another had opened up for him to start a life... But it was a moment gone too soon.

"I didn't know who they were, Rick. Or what they were, they found me an' I had no choice."

Rick nodded." That's the past Daryl, we don't live there."

Daryl looked down at his hands once again - looking for an answer probably, the one thing in his past that he couldn't get over was Beth being taken from him. No matter what happened, that was on him. He'll never be able to get over what he let happened, she made him believe and have hope for the first time in his life and now he felt like he couldn't go on, not without that support.

"After we find Beth, we gotta head to Terminus." Rick said to Michonne. He looked at his son who was still traumatized from last nights events, he heaved a sigh and moved in closer to Michonne." He needs a decent place to sleep, we all need a decent place to sleep. Be safe for a while."

She nodded." You think the others are there?"

"Its a safe bet if they followed the tracks, they can't miss the signs."

"And him?" She nodded towards Daryl.

"He feels responsible for Beth bein' kidnapped.." He looked back." I told him we need to work out a plan to get her back-"

"We don't even know who took her or where she is."

Rick nodded." I know.. But if that was Carl..." His jaw clenched." We have to, I'm not asking. I'm telling." He looked down the road with his hand gripping the butt of his gun." I have to, for Hershel."

Michonne nodded and sighed." So what do we do then?"

"Well, we have to find a car first. Since this truck doesn't run, we might get lucky down the road. If not we walk."

"That's a long way." She commented.

Rick walked to the back of the truck where Daryl was, he was looking through an old tackle box. In his hand was fishing line and a couple of hooks, older rusty hooks that probably hadn't been used in some five or six years. Rick grabbed a sleeping bag that was off to the side and pulled it to the edge of the tailgate.

Both men didn't speak, they just continued the task at hand which was gathering what supplies were stashed in the back of the truck. Rick figured Carl could use the sleeping bag, and the fishing line and hooks for fishing so they could eat and to set up a makeshift perimeter alarm for their next camp. There was a few medical supplies but not many, the first aid kit was practically bare.

"I didn't mean it Rick." Daryl mumbled." Walkers...I ran downstairs an' I told her to go up the road... I'd meet her there.."

Rick put his hand on Daryl's shoulder." This isn't your fault."

Daryl scoffed." Who's fault is it then?"

Rick offered silence and Daryl didn't berate him for it, he expected it. He could see Rick unsure of what to say, and he figured that's why he kept his mouth shut.

...

Beth mopped the cafeteria along side Joan who was oddly enough talking aloud about something, Beth at first assumed it was to her but later she realized it wasn't. She dipped her mop back into the bucket and wrung it out, the door to the cafeteria opened and Dawn walked through along side two other officers. One of which was Gorman, the creep who made a pass at her. But she didn't acknowledge their presence, she pretended that she didn't see them walk through, instead she looked out the window that was in front of her as she mopped. Or maybe she was just trying to hear what they were talking about without being so obvious.

"Has she been taking her medication?"

"Edwards said yes, but I don't think she has." Lucy said eyeing Joan.

Dawn sighed." Great. Go get Edwards and Hanks, we need to get her into treatment."

Beth's eyebrows furrowed as Dawn spoke to the other officers, what did they mean by medication and why did Joan _need_ treatment? She heard the officers walk away and she glanced over, Dawn stood there speaking into her radio. Unfortunately Beth couldn't hear her and that made her uneasy, but she wouldn't let on, as far as they knew she didn't hear that conversation. Or maybe they did.

"Beth, the hall needs mopping."

"I just mopped it." Beth said as she set her mop in the bucket.

Dawn's jaw clenched." Beth, Mop the hall!"

Without much thinking she grabbed the mop and the bucket, she pushed the door open with her hip and walked out into the hallway. The door swung back and forth before finally losing momentum and closing shut, she leaned the mop against the wall and peered inside the window hoping to catch a glimpse of what was going on. Right now though, all she saw was Dawn staring at Joan who had her back to her as she mopped. Beth felt the uneasiness grow inside of her as she watched, she hadn't realized that she laid a hand over her stomach. Dawn sat down at one of the tables - her eyes still piercing into Joan, Beth swallowed.

"You know Joan, taking your medicine will help you. That's all we want for you."

Joan snickered." I know what you want and what you're planning, I'm not stupid."

Dawn shook her head." I know you're not stupid, I never said you were. You're very smart Joan, that's why I want you to take your medicine."

"Don't fucking patronize me!" Joan snapped throwing her mop." That medicine makes me tired, makes me depressed. I don't wanna be like that...I-I want to be normal."

"You will be if you take your medicine, now don't fight me on this Joan. I will take action if you do." Dawn warned.

"Fuck you." Joan spat viciously. She bent down to pick up the mop when the two officers from earlier came out of virtually no where grabbing her from behind pushing her to the ground. She screamed and tried pushing them away but they restrained her arms behind her back.

Beth gasped and all she could do was continue to watch, it was like a train wreck that she couldn't stop watching. Doctor Edwards and Doctor Hanks walked into the cafeteria, they had brought a gurney with them that they kept by the double doors.

Joan's screams subsided but when she saw the Doctors they started up again, this time spitting out profanities. Beth watched in horror as Doctor Edwards kneeled down next to her, he pulled a needle out of his coat pocket and stuck it into her arm. Joan screamed in protest, Gorman the police officer brushed her hair back almost like he was soothing her, but Joan didn't find it comforting as her screams retorting into sobbing. Beth didn't feel like it was soothing her either, she felt as if Joan was scared more than comforted.

But before she could turn away Dawn looked over her way and saw her peering into the glass, Beth cursed under her breath and backed away. Now that she was seen what would Dawn do? She had to of known that Beth could easily see what they were doing, she wasn't a dumb woman that much Beth would give her credit for. So she couldn't do much. Beth quickly grabbed her mop and made it look like she was mopping instead of spying, she bit her lip as she tried figuring out what could possibly be wrong with Joan that she'd need to take medicine for.

The door behind her opened and she stiffened but never stopped mopping, her beat pounded against her chest. She knew who it was she wasn't stupid, she slowly glanced behind her and saw the dark blue kakis and the black dress shoes, she turned around and saw Dawn staring at her with displeasure crossing her features. Beth stood there awkwardly as she held on to the mop that was in the bucket, it was at the moment the only thing helping her stand as her legs felt numb.

"What you saw in there was necessary." Dawn said quickly, almost as if she was defending what they did.

"What's wrong with Joan?"

Dawn looked down at the ground, she inhaled then looked back up." She has a mental disorder, I can't specify what. All's anything anyone needs to know is that she needs to take her medication, if not she becomes a danger to us and to herself."

Beth's forehead creased and her eyebrows knitted close together, Joan didn't even seem like she was...She seemed odd at first but everyone was until you get to know them properly, she looked up at Dawn and saw a mocking almost patronizing look of sympathy across her face. Beth felt anger bubble inside of her, there was no way she'd let her get away with that.

"She'll be okay, she just needs to get treatment since she's gone a while without her medication."

"She seemed fine." Beth said.

Dawn's eyes intensified." What you saw back there seemed fine to you?"

"No.. I mean before she seemed fine, I-I...-"

"She's sick, Beth. She has been for a while, medication will help her get better."

Beth inhaled." Can I see her?"

"Not today."

Dawn walked away without another word leaving Beth puzzled with a million questions, she watched as the officer walked down the hallway seemingly okay as if nothing happened. Beth looked down at the bucket of water, she touched her forehead as a headache began forming. Something about Dawn and the way she patronized people made Beth angry, what gave her the right? People who patronize people seemed to be snakes, at least that's what she heard Daryl say. He said a lot though.

Beth decided that her shift was over, she dumped the bucket of water down the drain and watched as it swirled down almost hypnotizing her. She put the bucket down on the ground and looked at herself in the mirror, the cut on her face looked awful. It felt awful too, and it was ugly. She touched it with her one free hands and the ridges of the stitches sent a cold shiver up her spine, makeup couldn't cover this.

She picked up the bucket and walked out of the bathroom, sleep couldn't come faster. But up ahead stood Noah...And Dawn. Suddenly sleep was the last thing on her mind, it'd be the first time all day that she had seen Noah. She continued walking towards him when Dawn stepped to the side of Noah, he eventually turned around as well with a smile on his face. It was refreshing to see a smile rather then a cold stare.

"Hey-"

"What're you doing?" Dawn asked looking at her watch." Shift isn't over for another half an hour."

Beth sighed." My back is hurting."

"Did Edwards give you Ibuprofen?"

She shook her head no. Dawn shook her head with a sigh, she grabbed her radio that was attached to the shoulder of her uniform.

Beth smiled at Noah and set the mop inside of the bucket." Long time no see."

He bent down and picked up the bucket." I'll take it for you."

"No you don't have to." Beth protested." I'll do it."

Dawn walked up to Beth." Noah take the bucket, Beth go see Edwards."

Beth looked over at Noah who was staring at her with concern, she nodded and turned away from Dawn who stayed behind to finish speaking with Noah. Beth walked down the hallway feeling anxious, she rubbed her arm subconsciously. There was a bit of chatter that seemed to grow closer to her, she slowed down almost to a stop so she could listen. If she was ever going to feel comfortable even in the slightest, she needed to find out what this place and it's people were like. So far not so good.

"She's sedated, I made sure of it."

"Good." Dave nodded." Bitch is crazy."

Beth bit her lip and looked for a door that she could step into for a minute, there was a sign above the door that she was standing in front of. _X-ray. _She hurried over and stepped inside leaving the door open a crack, the room was dark and there was a projector in the middle of the room with a white board in front of it. The room looked like it was going to be used so Beth wouldn't poke her nose around, the last thing she needed was to be caught snooping. She already was chewed out for being out past curfew.

The officers walked by silently, their shoes squeaking down the clean floors that Beth had mopped earlier. And would most likely be mopping again tomorrow, she opened the door and peered out - looking to her right, the officers were walking completely oblivious to Beth being there and hearing everything they just said. She walked out and headed for Doctor Edwards office in the opposite direction of them, the walk seemed longer then she remembered. Maybe her nerves made it seem that way.

The blue door up ahead was open when she made it there, he was sitting at his desk looking at a manila envelope. His face was serious and focused as he thumbed through the pages, for a moment she contemplated on if she should even knock, but, Dawn said he wanted to speak with her. She knocked lightly on the light blue door, he never looked up as he summoned her inside. Beth swallowed and walked in.

"Dawn said I should-"

"I know." He held up his hand." Please sit down."

Beth nodded and sat down in the chair that she did yesterday, his detached mood made her feel jumpy and nervous. He finished reading the pages of what looked to be reports of some kind, but she wasn't exactly sure. He began cleaning up making the pages neat.

His eyes glanced up at her through his glasses." Back hurts again, huh?" He stood up." I can only give you Ibuprofen, but only one for today. That'll take the edge off of the pain, but I'd suggest rest. I'll talk with Dawn to see if you can be put on light duties."

"What happened with Joan?"

His lips pursed into a thin line, he touched his glasses pushing them up the bridge of his nose." That's not up for me to discuss, Beth. You know as well as anyone that someone's personal life isn't any business but their own. Which includes their health, unless they choose to tell you."

"I saw you stick a needle in her arm, why'd you do it? She didn't want it."

He sighed and began fidgeting with a pen." I sedated her, she needed her medication and sometimes she doesn't cooperate."

Beth stared at him, her anger beginning to surface.

"Beth, she can be a danger if left untreated."

She sat there ignoring him as she stared at the file on his desk marked Beth, her nostrils flared a little as she inhaled trying not to show that she was tearing up. Her whole story was right in front of her face, with one quick swipe she could find out what really happened. Doctor Edwards put his hand on top of her file and slid it to the edge, he sat down in his chair as he opened the manila envelope.

"I was reading earlier how you've not been given an ultrasound yet."

Beth raised an eyebrow." You have that equipment here?"

He chuckled." We have a lot here."

"And they work?"

"Well, not all of them. The fifth and sixth floor are run by generators. Not all machine's work, but ultrasounds are a must and we make sure they do work. We need them in case someone has internal damage, or in your case pregnant."

Weary, she nodded. An ultrasound sounded great in theory, but she wondered why they even cared when she would be leaving. Beth watched as Edwards wrote down on a piece of paper with a marker then stuck it into her file, she eyed him.

"How's tomorrow sound? Nicole, our ultrasound technician will come get you around eleven."

"Sounds great." Beth said trying to force herself to be more enthusiastic, but she was more suspicious.

She left his office feeling dizzy, not the dizzy that would make you sick, but the dizzy that makes you frustrated. He said the same thing Dawn said about Joan, then quickly changed the subject. Why did he even care?

"Oh Beth!" Doctor Edwards called.

She spun around and saw him hurrying up to meet her, he was holding something in his hands. She forced a smile when he neared and she saw the small pack of Ibuprofen.

"It's not much, but it should help."

"Thanks." She put them into her pocket and turned to leave.

Edwards walked up behind her." And Beth."

She turned back around." Yes?"

"You'll be okay." He smiled." You'll be okay here." He assured.

Beth swallowed and watched him walk away back to his office, his assuring didn't make her feel anything but scared.

...

**Got a little insight on Daryl. He's not doing so good. But Rick is there to help, yes I changed it because in my head this is really how the end of season 4 played out, instead of them completely forgetting about her. **

**Grady is getting weird, lots of secrets. Like I said it's going to be getting worse, this is literally the tip of the ice berg. I'm really excited for the next chapter, I'm already writing for it as we speak lol **

**Anyways! Please review, they really make me update faster and they get me motivated. if I get enough tonight I'll post a chapter tomorrow :D**

**XoXo**


	4. Chapter 4

Beth woke before the sun had risen, she was a bit sick, it wasn't anything too bad but she did however throw up a little. _Morning sickness_ echoed through her head as she laid her head on her arms inhaling slowly and exhaling slowly. But she wondered if it was something she ate? Whatever it was she was kind of glad that she had a bed to sleep and be sick in, but she wished it was in a better place like back on the farm, or somewhere safe where she can be with her family.

Gripping the sink next to her, Beth slowly stood up, her stomach feeling empty and hollow. Maybe if she went back to sleep she wouldn't be sick when she woke, although not much came up she couldn't fathom dry heaving again. It was the worst feeling in the world. She flushed the toilet and hurried back to bed and laid down, she pulled the waste basket over to the side of the bed just in case she did throw up again.

She rubbed her face and closed her eyes, her stomach rumbled and she felt as if she was going to throw up again. Or heave. Sighing dramatically hoping to momentarily block out the feeling, Beth sat up laying her head on her knees.

"Uh, who is it?" Beth asked, swallowing the bile in the back of her throat.

"Noah." A low voice said from the other side of the door.

"Come in."

Noah walked in and stood next to the door awkwardly, he wasn't sure what he should do. He wasn't even sure what was wrong, he just saw Beth sitting there. He walked over to the bed and laid his hand on Beth's back, it was saturated with sweat.

"Are you sick?"

She sighed." Yeah, kinda."

"Is it the baby?"

She sat up a little pushing her hair back." It's supposed to happen. It's morning sickness.. I think."

He nodded and sat down at the foot of the bed, he fished out a peppermint he had hidden in his pocket and handed it to Beth. She looked down eyeing the piece of hard candy, she remembered her mom used to say with an upset stomach all's you need is peppermint.

Weak but eager she took it from his hands, she opened it slowly using her teeth for an advantage. She popped it into her mouth and sucked on it, her stomach ached in response.

"Thanks." she murmured as she rubbed her eyes.

He nodded."I guess I should tell Dawn you won't be making shift."

Beth squinted." It's too early for shift."

He shook his head." No, it's just raining out. It's 8:30."

She groaned and covered her face." She's gonna be pissed."

"She'll get over it." Noah scratched above his eyebrow." Edwards already told her that you needed rest, so as long as you come out eventually she won't be too mad I don't think."

Noah touched Beth's shoulder giving a small squeeze as he left the room so he didn't get caught, Beth groaned as she laid her head back on her knees. She really wished she was with Daryl, yet she was glad she was here. But if Daryl was here with her, it'd be a lot easier to go through. She wouldn't be alone for one, or scared half of the time. But she knew that they wouldn't be here if he was here, he most likely would've thought of a plan as soon as his eyes shot open, but he had the advantage though, he was physically stronger which was needed around here. And he wasn't pregnant.

If she wasn't pregnant she would have tried escaping on the first day, but things were different now that she is, she has to think of her baby first. Everything that she did could put him or her in danger, so planning accordingly was smarter than jumping into it blindfolded.

...

Daryl walked aimlessly around the thick woods, he really didn't have a direction and neither did Rick or Michonne. They were going until they found a road or until they tired. Terminus was out for now until they found Beth, Daryl wouldn't be able to get comfortable in a place knowing Beth was out there somewhere because of his doing, he'd be too guilty.

The morning was gloomy and rainy and it really decreased their chances of finding any game, the little animals went into hiding it seemed, and the bigger ones were hunted by the dead. And right now too many people were slushing through the leaves and twigs not caring about watching their step, so any large animals or any at all will be out of their way even before they see them.

Between the weather, no game, and losing Beth, Daryl was lagging behind the other three, his crossbow draped over his shoulder loosely. His blinders were on as he looked straight ahead which wasn't smart, he should've been alert, but right now his mind was solely on Beth. Everything else in his mind didn't exist, he was a walking dead man as far as he or anyone else was concerned.

What would he tell Maggie if they came across her, he knew she wouldn't appreciate him letting someone or many someone's take her sister. He couldn't begin to imagine how Maggie could act upon hearing the news that her baby sister, her only blood relative left in this world was kidnapped. And was with Daryl at the time of her abduction. He was pissed when he found out Merle was chained to a roof and left for the dead, but there was proof of Merle still living. They had no proof of Beth's whereabouts, none at all. Not even a sliver.

"You hungry?" Rick asked Carl.

He nodded." A little."

"I could eat a horse right about now." Rick said hoping to lighten the mood some, but silence ensued between the foursome." I could eat it a hundred times, and never be full."

Michonne cracked a smile his way, Rick reciprocated. They both looked down at Carl waiting for him to say something, but he was unresponsive, Michonne inhaled and looked up ahead." I'm hungry... Times a hundred."

It seemed there were two people in this small group who were traumatized, Daryl looked down. He could feel his stomach grumble but he had no desire to eat, he knew Beth would give him hell for it, but he'd get sick if he forced something down his throat. He'd probably eat soon, but he knew it wouldn't be much. He didn't eat much anyways, and he probably wouldn't for a while. How could he? Guilt was eating him alive.

Michonne had fallen behind Carl and Rick, she was staring at him with a somber look. She was probably wondering what the hell was wrong with him, nobody had ever seen him so lost before. And he never let on if he was. She nudged him hoping to get him to speak, when he didn't she looked ahead at Rick and Carl.

"We're gonna fish for food, hopefully we'll get lucky."

Daryl nodded and looked down.

Michonne sighed." You worried?"

He looked back up and finally made eye contact with the woman, her face was serious but she had softness intertwined. Some caring features etched on her face as well, and for some reason he felt at ease, not completely, not Beth being back with him at ease, But, it was the kind of ease that made him less tense.

"Don't beat yourself up, we're gonna find her."

Beating himself up was something he always did and he did it like a pro, he would try to believe their words but it was hard. Truth was if it weren't for Beth being so positive and forceful about it he would still be this abandon little dog who attacked anyone who even tried to show him any kindness, when she was with him she changed him into someone he always wanted to be but never could, someone who enjoyed that kindness that she spewed, and now her being gone really drained him, it drained him so much that any kindness he'd not believe or he'd take with a grain of salt.

He felt as if he was reverting back to being the hermit that he always used to be, he didn't find things eventful anymore including speaking. Actually it was never eventful, but it was worth it talking to Beth. She was so different, and that lured him in like a fish to a shiny hook and wiggly worm, or a moth to a flame.

The group stopped abruptly, not sure what the problem was Daryl lowered his crossbow down off his shoulder just in case he needed it. Up ahead looked to be a chain link fence, _a house? _Rick pushed Carl behind him and slowly moved forward, Daryl brought up the rear with his crossbow slightly raised. He pushed through some thin twigs and leaves that covered the fence, Rick took out his knife and cut through some so he could see while Michonne held the rest.

"What is it?"

"Looks like a building?" Rick said unsure of himself." Old factory."

"Trust it?" Daryl asked speaking for the first time all day.

Rick looked behind him probably seeing if it was in fact Daryl who was speaking to him." No but-"

"Dad look." Carl pointed to a sign to the left of them.

The group took notice of where Carl was pointing and walked over to the sign that was attached to the chain link fence, twigs and poison ivy covered it. But they could see the writing - nice cursive, it was a name that stood out, one that was familiar, a name that made them all breath a sigh of relief but also raise their eyebrows.

_Terminus... _

...

Beth was brought into a small room, a single bed sat in the middle of the room with a machine next to it. She inhaled shaky breath realizing that this was actually happening, she was going to see her baby for the first time. She pictured it differently though, maybe she'd be married or at least engaged and with her husband or fiancé. She sighed as she slid on to the bed, it was uncomfortable blue leather covered in thin paper. The nurse who's name was Nicole, had informed her that even though it was early, she'd still be able to see at least something.

"I heard you had some morning sickness earlier."

Beth nodded." Yeah, I kind of still feel it."

Nicole gave a sympathetic smile." Sorry." She said as she began taking Beth's pulse, when she was done she wrote down some numbers." And how much would you say you weigh?"

Beth blew out a breath." Um, last time I checked was two years ago. I was like 110 then."

She nodded and scribbled in her notebook." Well you'll have to eat some more, it's important to eat Beth especially now.. I'll give you some vitamins that can help you stay healthy. Yesterday our officers went on a special run for you." she added.

She swallowed knowing that this was just another thing she would _owe_ to them, but she nodded anyways and watched as Nicole moved around the room swiftly. She grabbed a bottle out of a cabinet that had some type of gel inside or at least it seemed to Beth.

"I'm just going to have you roll up your shirt a bit."

She complied and rolled up her shirt as was instructed, the brunette who was oddly enough wearing the same type of scrubs as she turned on the older looking machine, it took a minute or two before it came alive. Beth watched as she squeezed some gel on to her stomach, it sent shivers up and down her body - her skin rising into small goosebumps. She took out the wand that was attached to the side of the machine.

"Normally we don't use this until you're well into your 8th or 9th week, but..." She turned towards the machine." We use what we can, plus Doctor Edwards wanted an early ultrasound to make sure everything was okay." She paused and looked over at Beth."So you're five weeks, huh?" She asked as she pressed the wand down on her stomach.

Beth nodded nervously, fear and anticipation building inside of her." I think so, that's what Doctor Edwards said."

The woman nodded as she moved the wand around her lower abdomen, Beth stared at the screen her eyebrows knitting some as she waited to see something that looked like a baby. But she wasn't expecting what Nicole pointed to on the screen, Beth exhaled a shaky breath as her eyes focused on a little black blob it seemed, Beth's forehead scrunched up and she looked to the nurse.

"I-Is that it?"

"That's it." She assured."Your baby is the size of an apple seed, what you're seeing is the sac." she traced the black blob with her finger.

Beth nodded." Wow." She paused." Can you tell what it is? Or is it too small?"

"No, not yet."

She was astonished and felt like this moment was all too surreal, she just _saw_ her baby...kinda. Nicole did some other things that took a few minutes before gently wiping the gel off of her stomach with a warm wash cloth.

"How're you feeling?" Nicole asked as she began turning off the machine.

Beth blinked a few times." In shock." She breathed a tiny laugh.

Nicole smiled." Do you still feel sick?"

"No, I'm actually feeling better."

"Okay good." She put the rag in the sink behind her." You'll have to have some blood tests and such before you leave, and after you can get your sonogram, I just have to go speak with Doctor Edwards first."

Worry suddenly flooded Beth."Oh, I-Is everything okay?"

Nicole nodded." Of course, he just wants to know when I'm done so he can draw some blood." She smiled." I'll be right back."

Beth rolled her shirt down as she waited, she wasn't sure how long she'd have to wait. But she was glad to be feeling better, her stomach still felt empty and the smell of food would probably make her nauseous, but the mint really did the trick. She wished Daryl was here to see their baby, he'd be surprised probably. And in shock. Sighing she looked down at her sneakers. It did strike her as odd that Nicole had to rush to see Doctor Edwards as soon as she was finished, she hoped she wasn't lying when she said that there was nothing wrong. She looked over at the clock and noted that it was noon, well 12:15 to be exact.

...

**First off I'm feeling a bit blah today, was having one of my annual dizzy spells this morning so I'm hoping my writing isn't off. I know I can get like that sometimes. Also I'm having a bit of computer trouble, so updates may come slower :( **

**So, sort ****of a slower, milder chapter. Originally it was going to be over 5k words with drama, but my laptop is having issues so I cut it short. It'll be a two part chapter, there's some interesting stuff coming up next :) **

**Terminus was kind of an accident for them to stumble upon. I may not go through the whole thing where they're at Terminus, but I will do like segments of when they are there. **

**I'll be doing a flashback pretty soon too, so I'm excited about that. Probably half of a chapter of a flashback!**

**Anyways I'll end this before it gets too long and my rambled go on and on. Please review, it makes me update faster, and it also makes me happy that people actually enjoy reading, be kind as always and make my night and morning! **

**Xoxo**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hope you'll enjoy, took me a while to write :D More notes at the end.**

...

Worry, fear and confusion ran through Beth, jumbling her mind as sat in front of Doctor Edwards as he thumbed through her file. She wasn't exactly sure why she was here or why he needed to see her, she already came to terms that there was something wrong with her baby, what other reason was there? No matter what she'd never get rid of it, she already loved it too much. But something struck as peculiar, Doctor Edwards didn't have much of a serious look on his face, he seemed rather cheerful.

So maybe there wasn't anything wrong..

Doctor Edwards looked up from her file and gave a smile." No need to worry. Everything is fine."

It seemed as if the weight of the world was lifted off of her shoulders, she almost felt like she'd cry. She smiled and watched as he turned around in his chair facing a filing cabinet, he stuffed her file inside like the many others and turned back around; he folded his hands on his desk.

"I spoke with Dawn this morning, I told her that you needed lighter work instead of such strenuous work that you've been doing, you seem to have some back problems and it's only going to increase as your pregnancy furthers."

"I'm afraid to ask what she said."

He smiled." Surprisingly, she agreed." He paused as he looked at a small picture frame that held his wife Janie, and their 5 year old daughter Hannah, he looked back to a thrilled Beth." See here at Grady we have the wards do rounds, we don't have much staff - so we train them to do what our staff would have done."

"So, I'm doing rounds?"

He nodded and swiped his hand over his desk." Yes, but only for two hours a day. Then you're back on laundry duty for one hour."

Beth felt excited, she'd get to see Noah again. And she could go over her plan with him, it wasn't the best plan but it'd have to do.

"Great. Thank you." She said trying to sound as sincere as possible, even though she couldn't be to someone who was involved with the people of Grady.

"You have time before I have to draw some blood, I want to show you something."

Beth swallowed and watched as he stood up. He took off his white coat, and grabbed his keys that were inside. He walked to the door and motioned for Beth to follow, she stood up and awkwardly pushed her chair back in it's proper spot. Cautiously she walked over to Doctor Edwards, it wasn't like she didn't trust him, but she really didn't. She didn't know him too well, and although she'd like to get to know him, he just seemed shady.

They walked down the hallway in silence before he stopped just in front of a metal door, above it said exit. He unlocked it and walked through, Beth peered inside then looked at Edwards who was holding the door for her. She swallowed as she slowly stepped inside the dark stairwell, she laid a hand over her stomach, already feeling like she had to protect her child. Or maybe it just soothed her, she was still trying to figure that out. Doctor Edwards moved around her and started taking the stairs by two, Beth _was _concerned, but now she was just plain curious.

"Um, w-where are we goin?" she asked as she followed him up the stairs.

"You'll see." He replied only glancing down momentarily before returning his eyes ahead of him.

Against everything she was taught, Beth continued following him. It was her damned curiosity. But, what else would she do today anyways? Aside from eating dinner and possibly going to see Noah, there was nothing.

They walked up at least a flight of stairs before they came to another door, and above in glowing red it too read exit. Beth's eyebrows knitted close together as he unlocked the door, but he pushed it open and Beth felt the warm Georgia air hit her skin and suddenly she wasn't as confused of what he was doing. She inhaled the sweet air as they stepped outside, around them were potted plants of various kinds. Mainly vegetables and fruits. Beth followed Doctor Edwards through the maze of plants and other wards that were tending to the growing plants, to which none noticed Beth or at least it seemed that they didn't.

Doctor Edwards walked to the edge, and for a split millisecond Beth thought he was going to jump, but he turned around to her and waved his hand showing her the city. It was even more devastating looking down at it.

"What'd you bring me out here for?"

He cleared his throat and sat down on the edge of an air condition unit." I wanted you to have some air. I don't think it's good for you to breathe in that stale air. Plus I wanted to speak with you."

Beth almost for a second believed that he wasn't like the others, he seemed like he was trying to help her. She looked around the area and noticed that there were no officers around watching, it would be easy for them to climb down a ladder and escape. Surely it was.

"Why're you helping me?"

He looked up at Beth, appalled almost." Because, if it were my wife stuck inside this place, I'd want someone to help her out."

Her eyebrows knitted close again, her forehead creasing." What are you talking about?"

"You've got to get out of here."

Beth stared at him in shock, but that was really all she could do. It wasn't exactly something she wanted to hear right now, it wasn't like she didn't already know that she had to get out, and hearing Doctor Edwards say those words made her panic more inside, now making leaving more urgent. The tone of his voice scared her more than the actual words that came out, he stood up and looked her in the eyes, his 6 foot frame towering over her.

"You have to Beth, this isn't an option it's a must. I can't tell you what they're planning on doing to you, and I don't think you want to know. Hell, I didn't even want to know." He paused and looked above her at the others, then back down meeting her eyes again." I'll show you a way out-"

"What do they want with me?" She asked her voice slightly cracking.

He put his hand on her shoulder." I-I can't tell you. It'll just scare you and right now you need to focus on getting out and saving your baby... And yourself."

"I need to know!" She snapped." You need to tell me. You can't just tell me they want me for something then-"

"Some kind of Testing.."

"What?"

He sighed." Testing, they want you and your baby for testing.."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means, that they will do things to you that will harm you... but to them it's not harmful, in their eyes they are helping." He sighed." It'll have long lasting effects on you and there is no guarantee that your baby will even survive it."

Those words lingered in her head, she swallowed and looked down at the ground. He gave Beth's shoulder an assuring squeeze before walking away to a tomato plant behind her. Beth felt like the wind was knocked out of her; She couldn't breathe. Why would they want to do such a thing? Especially to a pregnant woman, life was already precious enough.

"Will you help me?" She asked.

He turned around with a healthy tomato in his hand." What?"

She turned around to face him." Will you help me escape?"

"Beth-"

"No!" She yelled, her jaw clenched." This baby, it may be all I have of Daryl. I'm not gonna lose it because they think they can put an end to.. whatever this is. You either help me or you don't, but like you said if I don't leave they'll do tests on me, and you don't want that on your conscience, you wouldn't be able to live with yourself."

He gave her a sideway glance, he nodded slightly." There's stairs leading to the basement, in the stairwell that we were just in. There's walkers down there so you'll need a gun. There's an exit that leads outside to the front of the hospital... There's cars around just a few feet away."

Beth's lips formed into a thin line, he _was_ helping her after all. She would be more excited, but, upon hearing the news that her baby could possibly die soon, she wasn't really in a thrilling mood.

"Thank you." she moved to leave when he grabbed her arm pulling her back, she turned around looking at his somber face." What?" she asked.

He sighed." If they catch you, they won't hesitate to kill you. They have no mercy Beth, not for you and not for your baby."

"I think I got that."

"If you have no time to get a car, run fast. Get the hell out of the city, Beth. They'll eventually need to come back to re-group, make another plan. I can stall them as much as I can, it'll be enough to get you out of the city or hide even." He looked over at Beth." You have to Beth, and soon. Don't speak a word of this to anyone, or you'll never leave."

He walked away, leaving Beth to stew with his last words. He walked over to the hose and washed off his tomato that he picked. She inhaled and quickly walked over. she tapped on his shoulder, maybe a little harder then she should have. He looked up as he wiped off the tomato with a blue rag.

"What changed?"

His forehead scrunched in confusion." I don't understand what-"

"Yesterday, you gave me Ibuprofen and told me that I would do okay here. Why all of a sudden are you tellin' me this?"

He looked down at the tomato."There's ears everywhere Beth, remember that." he replied quietly, he moved away biting into the tomato almost as if their conversation never even happened.

She stood there watching as Doctor Edwards walked over to another ward; she suddenly felt uncomfortable. She turned around and walked over to some of the plants. She sat in the chair that was next to the Tomatoes and waited until she had to go back inside.

It was such a nice day out that she hated to give up the sunshine and fresh air, for stale closed up air that sat inside the hospital. She touched a leaf on a plant next to her and it was still moist from the early morning rain. Light crawling on her finger adverted her eyes to her hand waiting to see a creepy crawler, but instead of a creepy crawler Beth got a nice surprise. A lady bug sat perched on her finger, 'good luck' they say. And it couldn't come at a better time.

...

_"Did you ever want anything out of life?"_

_Daryl snorted." Just to live a normal life is all, Merle made it impossible."_

_"You miss him though don't you?" She smiled." I miss Maggie, and Shawn. I miss them bossin' me around."_

_He watched her as she talked in past tense, he refused to believe that they were gone. Not after she made him believe there was a chance, a chance in hell, but nonetheless a chance. _

_"I miss my dad." Her voice was knee deep in emotions that Daryl couldn't even begin to count, she looked up smiling, the moonlight illuminating her tanned skin." I always thought that... It'd happen different, he'd go in his bed with a few of us around.. It'd be quiet ya know?" She swallowed her moonshine." I thought that, we'd have summer picnics, weddings, babies, birthday parties.." She looked down."But, that's how unbelievably stupid I am." Her voice cracked._

_"That's how it was supposed to be."_

_She sighed as she looked down at the hole in her jeans." I'll never get the big weddin' or the babies, I'll never get those picnics or get to see my kids grow up." _

_"Don't know that." He replied his voice low._

_"Even I'm not that naïve to believe that."_

_Daryl scratched his arm where a mosquito staked its territory earlier." Ain't naïve, it's havin' hope like ya said."_

_Beth stared at him amazed that he remembered even in his drunken haze, she scooted over next to him and kissed his cheek. His cheeks flushed red and hot, but, he kind of liked it. He looked away hoping she'd move away, and when she didn't he turned back. _

_"What?" he asked feeling self-conscious._

_She merely smiled with a small shrug." Just always wanted to do that."_

_He snorted and looked away again._

_She nudged him." There's gotta be somethin' you always wanted to do?"_

_"Nah, don't go there." He shook his head as he once again scratched his arm._

_"I want to." _

_Daryl didn't want to say what he was thinking, it wasn't what he wanted to even admit to himself, even though he had already. Kissing Beth would almost be like going against Hershel as he held an immense amount of respect for him, even if he passed away._

_"C'mon we should go inside." He grabbed his jar of moonshine and Beth grabbed his arm, he looked down at her hand then up to her face. Her eyes were twinkling in the little light that they had, he noticed that her features were serious. There was no humor on her face or in her smile. He swallowed." Beth-"_

_"We might die tomorrow." she inhaled a shaky breath." What else do we got to lose?"_

_"What would your sister say, huh?" He started becoming aware of the situation at hand, and quite honestly it was sobering him up. Not something he enjoyed when he was enjoying a good buzz. _

_Beth sighed." Why do we got to bring her into this, this is my life."_

_"Keep your voice down, ain't no need to bring all the damn walkers in Georgia down on us."_

_She glared at him before standing up a bit wobbly, she walked to the front door and opened it." I'm goin' to sleep."_

_Daryl nodded and watched as she walked inside, he took another sip of his moonshine. He'd had one to many drunken hookups in his life, enough of them to regret it the next day. He wouldn't do that again just to have Beth regret it and hate him, if she still wanted to when she was sober then maybe, at least if that happened she'd be in her right mind...Kinda. Any girl would have to be crazy if they wanted to be with him in that way, he wasn't the best, hell he didn't even cuddle afterwards. Just went to sleep, not exactly something a girl like Beth would ever appreciate. _

_"Daryl?"_

_He turned towards the door and saw Beth standing there wringing her hands together, she looked nervous but what did he know? Everyone who was ever in his presence at one point had fear etched on their faces. Beth walked out of the house, her boots crunched the early autumn leaves that laid on the porch._

_"I'm sorry." She mumbled." I just don't...I just figured that I could have one night of fun, who knows if I'll ever get that chance again."_

_Daryl swallowed." You will." He said but barely as it came out as a whisper, he didn't think now was the time to be getting serious. Especially with what she wanted. She was just drunk, he wasn't going down that road. _

_"It's not like there's a line of guys waitin' for me." She blinked away some tears._

_"Don't cry 'bout it.. Ain't all that special anyways." Daryl admitted. For him yes, it was never special. Was just a mere act of animals getting a release while intoxicated, for Beth it could be special... with someone other than him. _

_Beth was silent as she stood watching him, he didn't like her watching him. Made him feel like she was seeing through him. Seeing of what he truly was, true she didn't make fun when he told her that he followed Merle around like a lost puppy, or that he had no job, or life for that matter. He looked over at her and sighed, he grabbed his jar and stood up. Her eyes followed his movements as he moved towards her, he touched her arm and turned her about face and gently pushing her inside._

_"Gotta get some rest, feel better in the mornin'." He walked over to the chair where he'd reside for the night, he wouldn't be able to sleep anyways. Beth needed it more it seemed, so she'd take the couch._

_As he turned around to set his jar on the table, Beth leaned forwards pressing her lips to his. At first shock overwhelmed him, then pure numbness. There she stood all 5 ft 4 of her cupping his face and holding it firmly in between her soft hands, her breath tickled his lips as they hovered just above. The tension was awkward, but, In an instant something snapped and she leaned back in for another kiss, only this time her tongue slipped into his mouth._

_He fell back in to the recliner and she on top of him, his hands found her hips as hers found the collar of his shirt. Her kisses were none of a woman with no experience. He didn't know If it was the alcohol or Beth's lips on his, but he was beginning to feel the uncomfortable tightness in his pants. He abruptly pulled away from Beth so he could catch his breath and maybe process what was happening, it was all happening so fast that his brain was unsure if it was really happening._

_Beth panted."What's wrong?" _

_"Nothin' just...You ain't gonna think I took advantage of ya right? I ain't got no-"_

_She leaned down pressing a kiss to his lips silencing him._

Daryl stared down at the trough that he kneeled before, he, Rick, Glenn and Bob were gagged and bound at the hands and feet. A man with a bat stood behind them, waiting for the word. A man they hadn't met before was at the end, Glenn was kneeling next to him. Any one of them could go, anyone of them and they'd never know. Daryl couldn't help but think of Beth and their time together at the house that they later burned down, it was something that kept him oddly calm throughout this and if he died at least he had that memory going through his head.. he'd die somewhat happy. He'd die happier if he got to hold her again, he'd be even happier if she was with her sister. But, he was in a way glad that she wasn't, she didn't need to be here.

Gareth walked in writing in a notebook. Daryl glared at the man. He couldn't believe he was keeping a tally, what else would he be writing? Daryl bit down on the rag that was tied around his mouth, his stomach twisted and he felt like he'd throw up. He never even got the chance to tell Maggie about what happened to her sister, never even got to tell her he was sorry. He looked over at Rick who was staring down Gareth as he knelt before him, Daryl watched as the man smirked at Rick, almost like he enjoyed seeing them all this way. But Hell, Daryl knew he did.

He took the gag out of Rick's mouth, and to Daryl it looked as if Rick were a rabid dog about to kill. He proved that the night before with Joe. It shocked him but at the same time impressed the hell out of him, Rick was meant for this world.

"What was in that bag you buried outside, Rick?"

Rick tilted his head slightly, a small barely noticeable grin on his face." Three shotguns, revolvers, a couple of knives, and machete with a red handle that I'm gonna kill you with."

Gareth smirked and put the gag back in Rick's mouth, he stood up and waved his hand signaling to the man behind them.

...

Beth walked through the halls of Grady still reeling from her conversation with Doctor Edwards, she wondered if that's what they were doing to Joan. Or any of the other wards. She hurried to the laundry room where she knew Noah would be, shift wasn't over just yet. In about twenty minutes it would be, so she'd have to make the conversation brief and leave quickly so Dawn didn't see them walking out together. She was supposed to be resting after all.

Slowly she pushed the door open to the laundry room, Noah stood with his back to the door. She knocked lightly on the door frame, his head moved slightly but he never turned around fully to greet her.

"Noah."

"Yeah?" he questioned.

Her lips fell into a frown as she walked over and leaned against the table." I have to talk to you." she whispered.

He nodded." A-About what?"

"Noah..." She said, he sighed and slowly turned to face her. Beth gasped." Noah! Your face, who...What happened?"

"Shh." He looked behind him and then looked back." It's nothing, doesn't even hurt anymore."

She bit her bottom lip." Dawn?"

Noah looked down not saying anything, but she drew her own conclusion. It pissed her off. She huffed and walked over to the door shutting it closed, Noah opened his mouth to protest but seeing how serious Beth looked he didn't want to chance getting his head bit off.

"We're leaving this place, they wanna do things to me and my baby and I won't let that happen, I can't. And, Dawn cant beat on you anymore. It's wrong."

He sighed." I want to... But-"

"No, we're leaving Noah. We have too, they will kill us if we stay."

"What?"

"What do you think they're doing to Joan?"

Noah's eyes were wide with confusion, was she really telling the truth or was she just making stuff up so they'd have more of a reason to leave? But, how could he think that when Beth stood in front of him panicking and practically in tears, he had to believe her. In fact, she was probably right it seemed like something that Grady would pull.

"Okay." he put his hand on her shoulder." Look, I would like to leave, but they ain't exactly keen on letting people walk."

"I know.. Doctor Edwards showed me a way out through the basement."

"Really?"

She nodded." He told me not to tell anyone though."

"And you told me?"

"You're just like me Noah, you deserve to get back to your family. I don't know anyone else in this place, not that well anyways." She paused and before she could speak again Noah nodded.

"Alright, when?"

...

**Creepy.. So a quick explanation of this chapter, I saw a theory a while back like when we found out who took Beth, and basically it was that they were trying to test stuff on Beth and she becomes immune to the disease... I liked it and so I decided to make Grady about that, but I didn't want to do that to Beth. I couldn't. **

**So Doctor Edwards, is he really helping Beth?**

**And I lied, the flashback wasn't half the chapter. I figured I'd leave it at a cliffhanger and let you all use your imagination, we can all just pretend that's what really happened in Still ;-) **

**So anyways enough of my babbles, please, please review &amp; Be kind. I've been so worried that this chapter wouldn't be good, but a few people who I talked to said it was good and just the type of sneaky, shady stuff that they'd expect from Grady. So here's hoping you all enjoyed :D**

**Xoxo**


	6. Chapter 6

_Earlier..._

_Doctor Edwards sat at his desk going over Beth's file, it wasn't everyday that he saw a healthy person, let alone a healthy pregnant woman and not to mention one in the apocalypse. He would be drawing her blood soon but wanted to speak with her before. There was something that he'd been itching to tell her, it'd have to be on the roof top since there were security cameras everywhere, it wouldn't be safe. Not for what he had to say._

_Nicole had left in a hurry to go do her rounds, but promised to bring Beth back. He was very adamant on informing her of Dawn's plans or at least some, they were ruthless and she needed to know, at least this way she wouldn't be caught off guard. Maybe she could get out before._

_There was a knock on his door and he looked up with a smile half expecting it to be Beth, but as luck would have it - Dawn stood in the entrance of his office, with Noah behind her. When he stepped out, he tried not to gasp. His face was cut up badly and his eye was already bruising and swelling._

_He fixed his glasses as he stood up from behind his desk._

_"Noah had a little accident, I had Mary stitch him up. But he's in some pain now." Dawn spoke in an unpleasant voice. Something he heard quite often._

_He nodded." Percocet.." He mumbled under his breath as he unlocked his medicine cabinet, he wasn't expecting to see Noah this way. Not after spending a year here and being Dawn's personal ward, and not to mention her best. He'd seen other patients this way, but never Noah._

_Noah walked over and took the small baggy that Doctor Edwards provided, it was only four, but it'd do the trick. Until next time anyways. He knew first hand that Dawn didn't just have one nasty encounter with anyone, it was multiple. Meaning, that he'd more than likely see him again._

_"Thanks." He said, his voice kind of raspy._

_"Did Mary examine his face?"_

_Dawn nodded." Nothing is broken, thankfully." She said almost as if she wasn't the culprit, Doctor Edwards watched as something washed over her face. At first he thought it was guilt, but, he soon realized it wasn't." You should head back to the laundry room." she told Noah._

_"Take those now, with water." Doctor Edwards added._

_Noah nodded and left the room, leaving Dawn behind with him. The woman had him so far under her thumb he'd probably do anything for her. She made her way over to his desk examining the paintings that hung in his room, when she finally made it she leaned against his desk and stared at him - eyes piercing into his skull almost as if they were looking into his soul. She was intimidating. He cleared his throat and went to grab Beth's file when she slapped her hand on top of his._

_"She have an ultrasound yet?"_

_He swallowed nervously." Um." he coughed." Um yes."_

_"Good." She picked up her file off of his desk._

_She opened her file and immediately took the sonogram out from under the paper clip. Her eyebrows knitted close together as her thumb ran over the picture, he had heard some rumors that she lost a child before all of this, and some said that's why she was so bitter. But he had a suspicion that she was always this way, most likely due to a childhood experience or strict discipline._

_"She healthy?"_

_"Yes, very."_

_He watched as she pushed the sonogram back under the paper clip, she laid her file back on his desk and pushed off. Her hands ran over her dark navy blue uniform; making sure that it was smooth, she blinked a few times and nodded. Edwards wasn't really sure what she was doing or what was happening actually, but it was startling to him. She was a loose canon who could explode at anything, and would explode at anything._

_She exhaled." I want you to keep watch of her and that baby, I need her in perfect health."_

_"Dawn-"_

_"No!" She slammed her hands on his desk." She is perfect Steven! She's perfect."_

_"You said that about Melissa, Kelly, and for fucks sakes you said that about Joan."_

_She shook her head in displeasure." Well, they didn't work out so well now did they?"_

_"It doesn't work like you think it does, Dawn." He was becoming irritable with her naivety._

_"I don't think you get it, Beth is our last hope. If it doesn't work on her, then there is no hope."_

_Opening his mouth to speak, but ultimately failing; he sighed and took off his glasses to rub his eyes. He heard his door slam shut and he jumped at the sound, he opened his eyes quickly waiting to see her still standing there, but she was gone. He couldn't help but sigh in relief, he tried composing himself before Beth came into his office, he didn't want her seeing him like this, it'd give too much away before she was meant to know._

...

Beth lay silently in her bed staring at the ceiling, she had a small candle lit and she watched the shadows dance around the room. Sleep wouldn't come and it was frustrating, they'd be leaving in less than four hours. Maybe it was nerves, or maybe it was because she was thinking too much.

The sonogram lay untouched on her table, she'd been looking at it for the past three hours in amazement. There was a baby inside of her right now, it was growing and forming as she laid there thinking. It put a hopeful smile on her face.

The time that she spent awake gave her a mountain of emotions, mainly excitement. But it also made her think about the future and what it held for her and her child. Would she ever find Daryl? Would he ever accept being a father? Would Maggie ever accept her having a relationship with Daryl? It wouldn't stop her though, she didn't need anyone's approval. But, it would be nice for her blessing. She didn't think that it'd be hard though considering Maggie, like her father would only want the best for her.

She did however wonder if she'd even get out of this alive, she had faith that she would. But, reality was hitting her harder than she could have ever imagine it would. One time it hit her hard and that was when a boy from middle school asked her out on a date, but having never showed up. She believed he would still show up even well after midnight or so before she finally gave up, finally having reality strike. But even then it wasn't as harsh, that was typical. This wasn't.

_12:39 _

Daryl stared up at the moon as he finished drinking his ration of water, it was a chilly night out and for the first time in a long time Daryl was cold. Carl was asleep in the sleeping bag they took from the truck while Michonne brushed his hair out of his face, his sheriff's hat sitting just at her feet.

The group consisted of Maggie and Glenn who huddled close to a fire for warmth purposes, Abraham and his people who sat close by, but keeping their distance. Bob and Sasha sitting together smiling at each other like fools, and a woman named Tara sat in the middle of Michonne, Rick and Carl and Abraham and his people; minding her own as she too tried to get warm. And then him...Daryl, sitting away from the group and the warmth of the fire - up against a tree.

He noticed that the wind blew in parts or at least it seemed that way to him. A gust would be stronger than the other, and a gust would be colder than the other. And they didn't happen all the time, it seemed that it took a while. But when it did the trees shook and crashed into each other, creating a spooky vibe.

Rick picked up Carl's hat and inspected it; looking where the gold band used to wrap around. It had fallen off sometime at the prison, he wasn't too upset over it, but he did feel bad. He remembered that day, seemed as if it were yesterday.

Seemed like a lot of things were just yesterday.

_1:15_

Beth was up sitting in the window sill looking out over a dark Atlanta, she couldn't sleep due to adrenaline and nerves. What they were about to do was risky, it not only could harm her but, her baby. She knew either way she could die, but she had a lot to lose. Maybe she'd get lucky and get out...alive.

Looking down at the city was scary, especially higher up. In the moon light she could see a few shadowy figures, but they were barely noticable. Her and Noah may be able to get out a lot easier, with it being so dark the walkers would have trouble seeing them. They'd smell them, which might be a problem. But all and all they'd have the advantage that they would need. The walkers wouldn't see them and neither with the guards. Unless they turned the spotlight on.

She touched her forehead, rubbing her pointer finger over it slightly. She needed to stop thinking or else she'd get sick with a mirgraine. Or a stress headache. Maggie always used to say she was just a drama queen. But she never really fully understood how sensitive Beth was to certain things. She looked back at the clock and sighed as she read _1:20. _Four couldn't come sooner, and neither could sleep apparently.

Light knocking came from her door and she looked up quickly about to ask who it was, when Noah slipped into her room. Hopefully unnoticed. He limped over to her holding a satchel in his right hand and a flashlight in the other, her eyebrows furrowed.

"What's that?" She whispered.

"Food."

She smiled a bit. He was more prepared then she'd ever be, the last thing on her mind was food. Or a flashlight. He too sat down on the window sill, although there wasn't much room to sit.

"We have a plan?"

She inahled." I hope." She exhaled all within the same sentence.

"You hope?" Noah asked raising his eyebrows.

"I have one, but I'm not sure if it's safe or even gonna work."

He looked towards the window; staring into oblivion. Going through the basement at night would be dangerous, while the hospital slept it was also quiet. They might not be able to hear the gunshots, but, any passing guard might. or the guards that were outside on watch.

"Well, what's your plan so far?"

Sighing and covering her face, Beth knew she'd eventually have to tell. Noah was risking his life too after all.

"In the basement, there's a door that leads to the front. Doctor Edwards said there are cars parked about 5 feet away, if we can get to them then we'll have a real chance."

"And if not?"

She bit her lip as she remembered what he said they'd do to her if they captured her; she swallowed." They'll kill us."

Noah rubbed his eyes with his palms, she could tell he was already frustrated. She was too, this place made it complicated to live.

"All this time runnin' from walkers, you forget what people can do." she spoke sadly.

"Statement of a century."

"So what do we do then?" She asked finally feeling a bit vulnerable without a plan.

He shrugged." I dunno, I mean I guess we could go your way and take our chances.. I'd have your back."

"Don't be stupid Noah."

Truth was, she could be equally as stupid. She always felt the need to help others, it was important to her. It was her nature. And against all odds she always found a way to help other people, even when they made it clear they didn't need any. But, she knew right now him having her back instead of the other way around, was more than likely best considering her condition. She had to live, and this baby had to also.

"Are you kiddin' me?"

Her cheeks flared red hot under his stare." I just thought-"

"We gotta protect you and that baby, Beth. You said it yourself, Daryl doesn't know yet. I ain't gonna be tellin' nobody about their dead girlfriend and baby."

She stood up and shuffled over to her sneakers that sat by her table and bed, _girlfriend _hadn't even crossed her mind up until Noah said something. Was she considered his girlfriend?

"I know.. I've always helped people and I wanted to help you."

He snorted." You are. I'm getting out of here."

Beth cracked a small smile knowing that what he said held a true meaning. He _was_ getting out... And so was she..

...

**Hey guys, sorry for the delay. I had an interesting day today, I planned on updating around 8-ish my time but I ended up getting a huge computer virus that shut it down. I got it fixed though, but not before I bought another computer. Silly me. **

**My spell check is having issue's too, it's not showing up so everything is manual. Hoping it gets fixed, strange enough it's only on here. So sorry for errors if any.. I checked to see, sometimes I over look no matter how many times I check.**

**The flashback I was excited to do, it shows what you didn't see, even though it wasn't much, it shows what happened.. I'm a nerd for clocks as a lot of people on tumblr are (TeamD) so I added my own clocks. **

**Next chapter will pick up where we left off in this one, I would have continued but my computer needs a break after today. Hope you all understand.**

**So, please review! I love hearing what you all have to say, they make me happy. And make me write quicker :D**

**XoXo**


	7. Chapter 7

Daryl stared at Maggie as the words she just spoke formed in his head, _was she alive? _Of course she was, but he wasn't exactly sure if he could voice those words. It wasn't everyday that the things he said actually happened.

He nodded slowly then glanced up at the brunette." She's alive." his voice didn't sound much like a man who was uncertain, but a man who was. He saw a look of relief wash over Maggie's face and he knew that look, that was hope.

She turned to Glenn who embraced her, she cried tears of what he hoped was happiness. He never did really understand why people cried when they were happy, usually tears were for sadness. At least that's what he'd always seen.

"A-Are you sure?" She asked.

"If they wanted her dead, they woulda left her. There was walkers everywhere." He looked down as flashes of that night flooded his vision." She's alive." He repeated.

"Now where do you think she is? We can't just pick up an' leave-"

"We're not goin' to Washington until our family is a whole...Got that?" Rick snarled.

Abraham's jaw clenched, but he didn't protest. Rick turned back to Daryl who was now glaring at the red headed soldier, he clamped his hand down on his shoulder.

"What'd the car look like?"

He sighed." Told you already."

"Everyone else needs to know, so we can all be on the look out." he turned to the rest." The more eyes the better, right?"

They all nodded including Abraham, he seemed angry that Washington was put on hold. The others that were with him held no emotions. Everyone else seemed relieved, Maggie too. It didn't matter much to Daryl what anyone wanted, he would stay behind and find Beth if they decided not too.

Abraham threw his hands up and turned away from them, his girlfriend Daryl assumed, she stayed behind and same with the mullet, who respectfully was named Eugene. Rosita looked down almost as if she was embarrassed by her boyfriend's behavior, he was after all being a bit irrational. And when he started cursing under his breath she turned around and hurried over to him trying to calm him down, Eugene stayed behind though, his lips in a thin line and his eyes focused on the archer.

Daryl cleared his throat and kicked the ground." Black car, white cross on the back.. It was an older car, a 90 somethin' ain't too sure."

Maggie sniffled as she wiped her tears." A-And where was it going?"

This was the point where Daryl felt vulnerable, he didn't know. And he should've known. All's he knew is what little he saw.

"I dunno."

"What?"

"Maggie." Glenn said pulling her back.

She pushed Glenn." You don't even know where the car was headed!"

"I chased that damn car all day an' night, I lost it. Came to a fork in the road..." He looked away." Ain't see you chasin' no damn cars!"

Rick held up his hands." Alright, enough! We don't need every goddamn walker coming down on us. This isn't the time."

"We don't have time!" Maggie yelled." She could be dead!"

Daryl snapped his head around; his jaw clenching." I told you She ain't dead!"

"Yeah, Now! Every moment we spend talking, her life could be at risk! We don't know those people, or..or what they want with her."

Rick, who was pinching the bridge of his nose. Something he did when he was stressed, looked up with a sigh." Fighting isn't going to fix anything, pulling together will. We will go as far back as we can and re-trace Daryl's steps. If we have to we will spilt up in small groups."

"Do you really think that's smart, Rick? I mean, we just got back."

He turned to Glenn." If this was Maggie, you'd want to do anything."

Glenn's lips formed into a thin line, he nodded; getting the picture. He looked down. Daryl watched Rick unsure of what was the plan really was, splitting up _was_ dumb since they all just got back, but he was right about something, he would do anything to get Beth back. She was important to the group... To him.

...

Beth and Noah crept down the hallway of the west wing, they managed to dodge two guards who were doing their rounds. They hid in a utility closet. It was uncomfortable due to the tight space, but it hid them well. And they weren't caught, that was a plus.

They kept close to the wall trying to avoid the moving security camera's above their head, Noah said that they had a minute delay. When the camera turned facing down the hall, she and Noah darted across into a smaller hallway that would eventually lead down to the basement. But, they weren't out of the woods yet. There were more security cameras, and guards. They ducked into a room just off to their right, Noah shut the door quietly as Beth backed away.

Noah backed away as well so he wouldn't be seen in the glass, although it was frosted, you could still see shadows. Beth turned around and gasped, her hand flew to her mouth as she stared at the lethargic body laying in the bed. Noah walked over and stood next to Beth in just as much shock as she was, Beth looked over; eyes watering.

"Joan." She whispered and started walking over.

Noah grabbed her arm, Beth spun back around.

"We can't, Beth. It's no use."

She shook her head." No use? Noah, look at her."

"I know. But, we gotta leave or we're gonna get caught."

Beth sniffled and snuck one last glance at Joan, she looked back and nodded. Noah hurried over to the door and slowly twisted the knob.

"You two are stupid." A raspy, barely recognizable voice said from behind.

Both Noah and Beth spun around fearing that they were caught. But Beth realized it was Joan, her eyes were open and roaming, but she held a blank stare as she looked at them - almost as if she were looking through them. Beth walked over and stood next to Joan's bedside.

"Joan.. You're awake."

She smiled." All that ruckus you two was makin' makes it hard to sleep."

Beth breathed a tiny laugh. She noticed all the needles in Joan's arms; her skin puffy and bruised. Beth frowned and looked back to Noah who was already looking down, she looked back to Joan who was blinking slowly.

"We'll come back and get you when I find my family.

Her eyes welled a little." D-Don't bother princess, I'll be long gone before that happens."

Beth was speechless, her family was out there and they could all come back to save her. She felt light tugging on her arm and turned around, Noah was inching closer towards the door. Beth looked at Joan once more, the curly haired woman giving her slight a nod with a smile on her face. Noah opened the door and grabbed Beth's hand pulling her out into the small cubby, he shut the door quietly and peered around the corner.

He counted to three on his fingers, they both darted out of the cubby and stayed close to the wall as they hurried to the door with the glowing sign above it that read _exit. _

_..._

Daryl, Maggie, Glenn and Tara were split up together searching the roads, it may not have been the road that he was on but, it was definitely a start. They could've come down this way, but Daryl knew how naïve he sounded, they could've been anywhere in the state of Georgia. And the chances of them driving down this road were slim.

Maggie was leading the foursome down a hill, daylight had just begun breaking over the horizon. Daryl calculated it was maybe five or nearing the hour. Everyone's nerves were still pretty much frazzled and they were all beyond exhausted, they never did sleep that night all except for Carl. But he was a kid, he needed it more.

"What does Beth look like?" Tara asked.

Maggie looked ahead holding back her emotions." Thin, petite.. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Probably a ponytail."

Tara nodded and looked down at the road.

Daryl's heart pounded against his chest with the mention of Beth, but the description was a vague. His description was a little different. Thin yes, but long slender legs, silky soft skin, luscious blonde hair, that despite having not been washed properly still held a soft texture, blue eyes as blue as the sky, but deep. He'd probably never hear the end of it if he spoke aloud what he was thinking, but he really couldn't help of what he was thinking.

"Sounds pretty." Tara said.

"She is." Maggie said making sure to emphasize is. Because she _is_ Alive.

Glenn stopped and pointed to something down in the small embankment right on the side of the road, Daryl quickly walked over having recognized the bag. He fell to his knees squishing in the mud, he ripped open the bag hoping to find something leading to Beth, but he only saw a single stack of money...The money he took from the cash register back at the gulf course, he took it out in despair then let it fall back into the bag.

"What is it?" Maggie asked.

"Beth's bag." He answered, his voice soft and pained.

Maggie ran down the small embankment and stood next to Daryl, she all but ripped the bag out of his hands. She looked inside probably with the same hope Daryl held, but when she saw the small stack of money she dropped the bag and stared at the ground.

"It's only one dead end." Tara said.

"A lot more than I though we'd find." Glenn said.

Tara nodded in agreement.

Daryl walked up the small muddy hill grabbing Glenn's hand as he lent it down, Daryl shouldered his crossbow again and started walking. His legs were wet and his pants from the knees down were soaked and caked with mud and bits of grass. Now he knew that they were on this road, either that or someone found the bag that night and they happened to cross where they left it.

"Hey!" Maggie called out to him; running up behind him.

He stopped briefly and glanced behind him, she stopped when she got close.. Panting some as she tried catching her breath.

"What?"

She swallowed." Why're you walking so fast? we need to think up a plan."

He turned away and started walking while gripping the strap to his crossbow." Already got one."

"Can you share it with us at least."

He rolled his eyes." Ain't sharin' shit. Follow me and you'll find out the plan."

...

Noah pushed open the door to the basement and Beth raised her gun, they found one with a silencer. It would come in handy. Noah held the flashlight as Beth walked through, she was the only one with a gun and the only one who really knew how to shoot. Noah did, but wasn't that great. And right now target practice wasn't an option. She swallowed upon hearing the first snarl.

"Flashlight." She commanded. She reached behind her for the flashlight as Noah handed it to her, she flashed it on a walker that was shuffling towards them. She raised her hand and pulled the trigger shooting it between the eyes.

They moved through the basement quickly and quietly; Noah hot on Beth's heels, he had picked up a crowbar just in case. The putrid smell of rotting bodies made Beth's stomach churn.

There was another snarl and she flashed the flashlight where she believed it was coming from, she stopped abruptly so she could wait when Noah ran into the back of her shoving her forward. A walker lurched for her managing to grab her shirt, she gripped it's shoulder as she felt the wind from it's jaws as it snapped, the walker was dangerously close to her neck. She shoved the walker back with all of her might and raised the gun, pointing it at its head as it stumbled back to it's rotting feet, she pulled the trigger before it had a chance to stand straight.

She and Noah moved towards the exit that seemed like only a few feet away, Beth flashed the flashlight on a gaggle of walkers. She shot off rounds, but sparingly. The one's that were closer got the boot. Beth grabbed Noah's hand and ran down the narrow corridor towards the door.

Beth and Noah pushed hard to open the metal door, it opened with a creek and slammed shut as they exited into the chilly morning air. Her skin pimpled into little bumps. She ran up the concrete stairs with Noah behind her, the sun was now beginning to rise. And so was Beth's anxiety. They pushed through the chain link fence and stopped in horror as walkers that were shuffling away, turned and began shuffling towards them. There were panicked voices coming from the hospital entrance.

"Shit." Beth cursed. With no time left to think she raised her gun shooting the first female walker that was coming straight for her, Noah grabbed her hand and started pulling her. Beth raised her arm and shot another walker that lurched for Noah.

"Run!"

Beth dodged a few walkers as her and Noah made it to the second chain link fence, there was no time for a vehicle. He pulled her through the small opening of the fence, the broken metal slicing her shirt open. She raised her gun as they ran, she turned around and shot at the guards as they tried to follow but missed. She pulled the trigger once more but it jammed. She tried pulling it as frustration leaked out, finally giving up she let it drop from her hands.

They ran down the road that led to the hospital, it was littered with trash and dead walkers. The wind blew the trash around making an eerie vibe, Beth looked behind her hoping to not see the hospital, but she was disappointed. It stood high and overlooked the city.

Noah and her rounded a corner but stopped abruptly as a black charger cruised down the main street. Beth stared in horror, their escape was over. They would get caught and die, just like Edwards said. That was until Noah grabbed her and yanked her into a building. His finger was pressed to his lips and she nodded automatically knowing, they ran around some chairs and a few desks trying to get away from the entrance, before finally ducking behind a large desk.

It must've been some type of bank she thought as she looked around observing their surroundings, something they had to do and didn't. Noah was peering around the desk, and Beth too peered around. The black charger slowly drove past the building almost coming to a complete stop, Beth laid her head on his back - closing her eyes and praying. She didn't want to see what would happen.

But nothing did. They drove past them soon after; oblivious. Noah sat back against the desk with a sigh, a relieved sigh. Beth stared at him; wiping off the sweat that formed on her brow.

"You okay?"

She nodded." Y-Yeah." She looked down at her shirt and saw it was bloodied and ripped." Great."

"There's a clothing store around here."

Beth nodded and sat next to him." We need to find weapons. I don't have the gun, it jammed and I dropped it."

"Alright." He nodded and rubbed his face." Should be one around here."

She leaned her head against the desk and closed her eyes taking deep calming breaths, she couldn't believe that they escaped. She knew they would, she just had a small fear that they wouldn't. But they weren't entirely out of the woods yet, those Grady people were searching for them. They were still in quite a bit of danger, but once they left the city, they'd have a chance.

...

**They escaped! But is the danger really gone? **

**I'm actually really excited to write the next chapter :D It'll mostly be about Noah and Beth. And Grady and how they are dealing with the escape. **

**Anyways please review! It's late here so I need to get to bed..!**

**Xoxo**


	8. Chapter 8

Beth and Noah found a once incredibly trendy clothing store that, surprisingly wasn't completely raided, it still held various things such as jewelry, clothes, shoes, bags, and random items. However, it wasn't a normal shopping trip, with Grady still looming over them they only needed little things that would last them a while. But, somehow in the mix of it all Beth got distracted and began looking around. She came across a plain bracelet with a cross, she examined it with a smile, it was perfect.

She turned around after plucking the bracelet from the bin; ready to find the dressing room, when she saw a couple of cross body bags and fancy purses. They hung next to the boots, which Beth would be needing. The bag that stood out the most to her was a dark purple bag, the color reminded Beth of red wine. She walked over and plucked it off of the hanger, it was lightweight but sturdy and had many compartments.

She found herself folding the few shirts she found and laying them neatly in the bag, and it was filling quickly but with Beth's unique folding tricks, there was plenty of room left over. Eventually, she would need larger shirts, with her pregnancy advancing it was almost impossible to ignore that need.

She took the clothes that she picked out to wear and walked to the dressing room, the clothes weren't anything special, just a plain green tank top, a pair of blue jeans and cowboy boots that looked almost identical to her previous pair. The dressing room was anything but welcoming, it was cold and there were boxes and clutter thrown everywhere. As she made her way further into the rows of stalls, she saw blood smeared across the wall towards the back. She inhaled sharply, quickly adverting her eyes down to the clothes she held, she couldn't stand to look. But she had to get dressed, the longer they stayed in the city, the more chance they have of being caught.

After dressing in the clothes she picked and discarding the disgusting scrubs, she began pulling her boots on and for a second, just a second, she had forgotten where she was. She half expected Maggie to ask her to come out and show her what she looked like, it wasn't until Noah called into the dressing room that she was thrust back into reality; she frowned.

"I'm in here."

He knocked lightly on the first door." Find some stuff?"

"Yeah, some." She said as she glanced in the mirror. Her jeans were tight on her but that was expected since the jeans were never worn before. She sighed. Or maybe she was just gaining weight.

Noah nodded and leaned against the wall; waiting.

"I'm glad that I found this stuff, in a couple of months I'm gonna be gettin' fat." She opened the stall door and walked out holding her bag.

He pushed off the wall holding a backpack of his own." Ready?"

She nodded." Yup."

Beth followed him out to the middle of the store. Despite still having trendy clothes, it was falling apart. Pieces of the ceiling caved in at one point, water damage, the floors busted up in different areas, windows busted out. Noah stopped abruptly; standing completely still, Beth had almost ran in the back of him. She peered around him and saw the few walkers shuffling by, normally it wouldn't of been a big deal, but they had no weapons and it was a very big deal.

He looked over slowly, careful to not attract the walkers just outside." Behind the counter."

Beth nodded and slowly dropped down to the ground, she crawled over behind the counter and sat against it; her heart in her throat. She was becoming frustrated and scared that they couldn't and wouldn't come up with a plan in time, they were practically sitting ducks - they did possess any weapons, nor did they have transportation. They needed to leave before Grady came up with a bigger and better plan to sweep the city for them.

"We need a plan." Beth whispered as Noah crawled over to her.

He nodded.

"Well.. Say somethin'." Beth said." I don't know the city all that well."

He opened his eyes." There's stairs in the back."

"There is?"

He nodded and rubbed his face." Almost always is."

"Where does it lead?"

"An apartment usually, sometimes store owners live above their stores. Sometimes it's just a storage place."

She nodded and grabbed the pocket knife she swiped, so maybe they had one weapon. It still wasn't enough to feel safe. But right now, if a walker was to stumble in here and behind the counter, they'd at least have something. Noah peered over the counter and counted at least thirty to forty walkers, enough to make a small herd. He rolled his eyes as he slowly sat back down.

"How many?" She whispered.

"A lot."

She frowned." Great." She whispered.

...

_Grady Memorial. 7:45 A:M_

"I don't care what it takes, get them back!" Dawn yelled.

Doctor Edwards was seemingly unaware of it all as he stepped into Dawn's office, as she demanded everyone do. When he walked in, all eyes turned from Dawn and landed on him. Even though he was supposed to know nothing, he became increasingly subconscious that his lie was written all over his face.

"Where the hell have you been?"

He cleared his throat." I was working with Joan, she's in critical."

Dawn nodded." This isn't about Joan. This is about Beth and Noah, they got out! DO you know anything, anything at all about this?"

He shook his head no, he hoped to be convincing. He was after all lying.

"I-I have no idea, when did this happen?" he adjusted his glasses.

"About an hour ago." Shepherd spoke." Me and Tally tried to run after, but we lost em'. St. Jaques, he was patrolling the main strip. He thought he saw them, but it was walkers. He said there was a big herd anyways, they'll either flush em' out, or kill them."

Dawn's hand connected with his cheek. The sound was excruciating, and he was glad that it was Shepherd and not him. He immediately clutched the side of his face and groaned in pain. It was already red as a tomato. She turned and stared at Edwards; chewing on the inside of her cheek, he could tell by the indent of where her teeth were. She nodded at him - he swallowed.

"Beth was with you all day yesterday, she didn't seem _off _did she?"

He shook his head." No, not at all. She seemed perfectly fine."

Dawn slammed her hand down on the table." Shit!" she turned around and held her head as her breathing became rapid." Shepherd, you and Tally get out there and find them. I want them both alive, no funny business!"

...

Beth and Noah were raiding a small gun shop, but it had already been raided before. Well for the most part. They did find a pistol and a shot gun, and two boxes of left over ammo. And now they were searching high and low for more, two boxes wouldn't be enough. Especially when they were all for the pistol. The shot gun had some ammo in it already which was relieving, but they both knew it wouldn't last long.

Noah was searching for more ammo in the oddest places, he looked in a purse that was left on the counter, in drawers, under a desk, in the bathroom... Anywhere really, they didn't have much to lose, well Noah didn't. Beth found herself laying a hand over her stomach as she sighed, she would've looked with Noah but someone had to keep watch.

"Psst."

She spun around and saw Noah ducked down behind a shelf, he waved her over and without hesitation Beth dropped down and crawled over. He gripped her arm when she was close enough and pulled her over next to him.

"I saw them, they're driving around."

Her eyes watered and she looked down." Great."

He crawled over to the back door and opened it a crack, he watched as the station wagon that was circling, drove by slowly then turning down a street. He knew this would be their opportunity to escape. He turned back to Beth and waved her over, she pushed off of the floor and hurried over to the door.

"They just turned down the street. C'mon." He pushed open the door and walked out. He pushed Beth ahead of him." Go!" He hissed. He watched as she began running down the grassy dirt path.

Beth glanced behind her to see if Noah was following, and he was of course. She turned back around and continued running, he'd eventually catch up. She hurried down the small set of stairs, her heart beating a mile a minute. When she finally landed on the asphalt she darted across to the other side, she hurried up on to the side walk and looked behind her, Noah was coming down the stairs slowly due to his limp.

She turned back around knowing he'd only be a second and reached for the door just as a walker slammed itself against the glass, it startled her enough that she jumped back. She looked behind her again and saw Noah jogging over, he was panting and out of breath. When he was close enough she grabbed his arm and helped him into the shade of the building.

"The door's locked." She panted.

Noah hung his head with a huff, he looked back up and without words he raised the butt of his gun and slammed it into the glass, the walker that was making noise stopped and lunged for them. The butt of his gun connected with the rotting face of the corpse, it stumbled back and fell to the ground. Noah carefully stepped inside the building, then helping Beth inside careful to not touch the broken glass. She walked inside the lobby of the building and looked around.

The walker on the ground groaned and tried standing, Noah raised his foot and slammed it down on his head; ending it. Beth swallowed and looked away, the sight of it's brain's and blood made her want to vomit.

"Noah." She choked as she held her mouth." C'mon, we don't have-"

Beth noticed through the window that the station wagon stopped just at the corner of the building, she knew they had been caught. She raised her gun and pulled the trigger, the bullet shattered the glass as it tore through. It hit the car but only denting the exterior, which wasn't what was originally planned. Beth and Noah started running down a hallway that eventually led to stairs.

They were caught, Beth wasn't dumb. She knew Dawn would now have a reason to punish her, she tried to kill the officers. But she refused to get caught and go back to that God forsaken place, not after getting a taste of freedom. Not after knowing their secrets.

Surprisingly, Noah was right behind her as they ran up the stairs, she didn't expect that considering his leg. They managed to dodge walkers as they slammed against the doors as they raced up different levels of the building, they even managed to dodge the walkers that were up against the walls in a deep slumber. They didn't have much time to kill them, they'd just leave those walkers as obstacles for the officers. It'd buy them sometime at least.

To her right was a door, and without thinking much Beth pushed it open. The stench of rotting corpses brought her to a halt, she covered her nose as she cautiously walked in. Noah took a chair that was by the door and put it up under the knob, he grabbed his gun that he laid against the wall and started following Beth. He opened a few of the doors that they passed in the hall, none of which were any of importance to them. Just smaller offices that were trashed.

The putrid smell grew as they entered the much larger office, Beth doubled over with one hand on her knee and the back of her hand holding her mouth. Noah looked around and saw the culprits of the smell, two walkers laid on the floor; dead. He put his hand on Beth's back.

"You okay?"

She shook her head and spilled the little contents that she stored in her stomach, it wasn't much though, just a couple of crackers. She stood back up wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she gave Noah a smile showing her gratitude. He was after all looking out for her more than she was. Beth inhaled slowly then exhaled, the queasiness finally subsiding. She hurried over to the window that was behind the desk and peered down to the street below them, the car was now parked at front entrance with both passenger and driver side doors wide open.

Beth turned to say something to Noah but stopped and watched as he searched through the walker's pockets, she frowned. It bothered her but she knew he was only doing what was necessary in this world, survival of the fittest. You steal so you can survive, if not you die. But he had no such luck with finding ammo or food which Beth assumed he wouldn't, but he did however find a pack of gum. He tossed it to Beth after wiping it off on his jeans.

"Thanks."

"It's peppermint."

Beth smiled and looked down at the pack, she ran her thumb over the lettering before stuffing it into her back pocket. She walked back over to the window and stared down at the city below, it was scarier then her Daddy ever mentioned. But that type of scary was typical.

Suddenly something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention, Beth adverted her gaze to her right and watched as a black charger drove down the street.

_Grady. _

"Guess they found more victims." She mumbled.

Noah walked over and peered out the window, he watched as the charger slowed down to a halt just a few blocks away. Noah didn't want to say it, but he had a feeling they already came up with their master plan.

"We gotta find a way out of here, it ain't safe."

"How?"

He shrugged." I don't know."

"I'm not goin' back Noah, I-I can't. I have to find my family."

He honestly didn't know what to do or say, he knew she was stubborn. And even if he wanted to do what he had in mind, she'd never go for it. He blamed himself for this, they wasted so much time shopping for new clothes when they could've been out of the city by now. He looked out of the window and folded his arms, he would save Beth if he had too. He would do it because she needed to get back to her family and to Daryl, the father of her child.

"Do you trust me?"

Her eyebrows furrowed." What does that mean?"

"Simple yes or no?"

She nodded." Y-Yes, of course."

...

**Had so much trouble writing... Writers block.. It's not too severe, but took me a while to update :/ **

**So Dawn's on a war path, but it's the norm for her lol **

**The tables have turned, Noah is helping Beth instead of the other way around. But will it end in bloodshed? **

**If I get a decent amount of reviews, I'll see if I can update tomorrow!**

**Also, Team Family will be a big part of next chapter :D **

**Review please, and be kind!**

**XoXo**


	9. Chapter 9

**I actually wasn't too impressed with last chapter :/ But I promise this chapter will be better, not only for me to read but for you all to read!**

**...**

Daryl stood up after kneeling from filling his water bottle at the creek, they'd been walking since before five in the morning and were all exhausted. Daryl on the other hand wasn't, his mind and body were on auto pilot. But he knew they needed some type of rest and so did he, then after they could move on. Daryl shaded his eyes from the sun as he turned to walk back up the hill, it was already beating it's rays down on his worn and rough skin.

"You ought to eat. You'll need strength."

He turned the moment the strong southern drawl hit his ears, he twisted the cap back on the water bottle and set it down on the ground. He wasn't really hungry, not after what happened. Most of the time he forced the food down his throat, then later paying for it.

"Ain't hungry." He said as he plopped down next to the bottle, he laid his arms on his knees as he watched Glenn and Tara fish. Maggie sat next to him and mimicked him as she too pulled her knees up.

"I want to thank you for being so forward with finding Beth." She inhaled." When you told me that someone took her, I-I lost all sort of hope that we'd find her. Maybe I was angry with myself for not being a good sister and looking for her too." She looked down; her hair falling in front of her eyes from her half up-do." And I guess I was angry at you too for my selfishness." She sniffled.

She wasn't a bad sister like she thought, she just made poor choices. She was a good sister, great even. She never made fun of Beth, or made her do stupid things for her entertainment, never got her in trouble for something she did. Or left home leaving her with an abusive drunk, then come back acting as if nothing had ever happened. She was a good sister.

"Ain't gotta thank me, I was gonna do it anyways." He admitted.

She gave a smile, it was warm but sympathetic almost. Maybe for the both of them, or maybe for his dedication to find Beth. But she seemed content afterwards, she wiped her face and stood up. She walked down the small embankment to Glenn and Tara who caught a few fish, Daryl didn't he just continued staring; unamused by their catch.

"He okay?" Glenn asked Maggie.

She nodded." He will be. He just wants to find her already."

"We all do."

She nodded and looked down at the fish. Glenn put his hand on her back and looked down the creek; inhaling deeply.

...

Beth watched as Noah gave her his backpack, it had ammo inside and some food. She hated that he was doing this, in fact she didn't want him to do it at all. It was just too much for her to take in. She would be alone...again, granted she'd find her family, she just expected Noah to be there with her and then they could take him back to his family.

"Are you sure you wanna do this?"

He nodded." Don't talk me out of it. You need a running start."

"I can take them out ya know."

He looked up from his bag." Don't.. Just run, I'll figure a way out. Edwards is on our side, he'll help me out just like he helped you out."

"They will kill you Noah, or Dawn will. I don't want to remember the day that I escaped as the day that you died."

Noah sighed and stood upright, he covered his face." The what do you want to do?" He took his hands away." We have no more options, we are out of them. We been out of them since we left."

Beth bit her lip as her eyes began watering, it wasn't because he was yelling, but because he was right. They were all out of options, and they were ever since they left. She watched as Noah paced the room rubbing his eyes, she sat down in the chair realizing that their attempt to escape failed miserably and they were both either going back to Grady, or one of them would die.

"What if, you tell the officers that I was bit and you had to put me down, then you kill those officers Shepherd and the other man, then we'll take the car?"

Noah snorted.

"It's better than me runnin' away while they take you back there!"

He plopped down on the couch and rubbed his face." They're gonna see the gun even before I raise it. They use to be on a police force, they are trained to spot weapons."

"Then I will. You tell them that I was bit, let them take you and then I'll kill them and we'll take the car."

He sighed and leaned his elbows on his knees." This is ridiculous."

"What is?"

Noah stood up and pointed out the window." This, out there, them, everything."

Beth swallowed and blinked away a few tears." I know."

"Why can't we just go along with the first plan?"

"I'm afraid to be alone.." She admitted." I was never alone, I was always with someone. Even after the world ended." She looked up as tears formed in her eyes." I always had my dad, my sister, Patricia and Otis. And now I have no one, and it just reminds me of how messed up everything is. It reminds me that nobody is gonna come save us."

Noah was silent as Beth spoke, and even after. He never realized how true her statement was until she said it, and it was the cold harsh truth. There wasn't a Government that could save them, they had to save themselves. And right now they were trying, but maybe she had the right idea and killing _was_ apart of saving yourself.

"Nobody told me how bad people can get." He breathed a tiny laugh." You always think when disaster happens, people are gonna be helping each other out. But they don't. It's all a game to them."

Beth sniffled.

Noah sighed." Alright, we'll do it your way." He looked towards the door.

She looked over at Noah as she wiped her tears away." But we need a plan, we can't just do this blindfolded."

He looked down at her and shook his head." I know."

...

Soon after they ate the fish, they left their makeshift camp. Daryl had only a bite and immediately felt sick. Maybe it was lack of food all this time and then finally eating, or maybe it was just his head, but he really wasn't sure. Everyone was silent as they walked down the road, the rhythm of their shoes scuffing the ground as the only sounds coming from them. The rest were from nature that surrounded them.

Daryl felt like they were getting closer to resolving this mess, like maybe just maybe there would be a sign for them to follow. He didn't know why he all of a sudden felt this, maybe it was just Beth creeping into his soul.

"Did the car have a license plate?"

Daryl looked over at Tara who was oddly enough speaking, she was quiet but when she spoke she was assertive.

"Don't remember, too dark."

She nodded and looked back down. All's he really remembered seeing was the cross on the back windshield, and red. When he was furious he saw red, and along side seeing the woman he was with being taken, he saw red. He wanted to strangle the person who took her, and it killed him and still does that he didn't get the chance to.

The road seemed never ending, and he was hoping that the intersection they all agreed to meet at would come soon. He just wanted to re-group and tell the others what they all found. He looked down and watched his feet, his boots were destroyed. But that was the least of his concerns.

"Look."

Daryl looked up and saw a group of people up ahead, at first it looked like a herd of walkers marching together, but it wasn't. Instead it was Rick, Michonne, Carl, and the rest, and someone that he'd never thought he'd ever see again...Judith. He looked around and saw Tyreese with Mika and suddenly it clicked. Carol was gone. Someone else whom he had grown close to over time was gone, he sighed; feeling numb, but he tried to show that he was happy for Rick and Carl.

Rick was smiling and still had tears in his eyes, Judith who was in his arms was looking around while chewing on her fingers. Carl had a relieved look on his face, and Daryl could imagine so since his baby sister was alive and back with them.

"Ran into them while in the woods."

Daryl nodded and looked at the baby, she seemed like the same old Judith he remembered back from the prison.

"Run into anybody else?"

Rick shook his head, almost regretting that he didn't find anything else.

"We're missing people." Tyreese said.

"No shit." Daryl mumbled. He kicked the ground with the tip of his boot.

Rick sighed and turned around facing Tyreese." Beth was kidnapped a couple of days ago almost a week, and Carol... we haven't seen her yet."

"Man." Tyreese shook his head and looked down at Mika, she frowned.

"We were looking for her when we ran into you, we're still going to do that, now that we have more people we have more eyes." He kissed Judith's head as she cuddled into his chest.

Daryl who was becoming annoyed just standing around, started walking as his mind began racing, he squinted as something up ahead, something black came barreling down the road. _A car. _

_A black car with a white cross on the back?_

He turned around with his heart in his throat." We got company!"

Everyone looked up; raising their weapons immediately, including him. He felt someone come up beside him not long after, he looked over and saw Rick. He looked back and watched as the car continued coming towards them. Maggie and Glenn came and stood off a little ways behind them, looking nervous as they raised their weapons. Tyreese and Tara took the kids and moved them off to the side, Bob and Sasha just stood there - confused but nonetheless holding weapons of their own.

The car suddenly locked its brakes, stopping at least a hundred yards away. They started running towards the car, Rick aimed for the hood and pulled the trigger; giving them a warning. The doors flung open and two officers stepped out pointing their guns at them.

"Drop your weapons!" They called.

Rick snorted; still gripping his gun." We don't want any trouble!"

"The put your weapons down!"

Daryl glanced at Rick - shaking his head in disbelief, he turned back to them. They could drop a needle and it could be heard, the silence was so unnerving. But Judith started crying from behind, Rick looked back and cursed slightly. He turned back around." We have children back here!"

The officers with the mention of children, lowered their weapons. They slowly walked out from behind the car doors; putting their weapons down to their sides but never letting them go, Daryl wasn't taking any chances, he kept his bow aimed and ready. Rick never put his gun down entirely, but Maggie and Glenn did.

"Didn't know you had children." The one officer said." Thought you were gonna rob us."

"We don't do that." Glenn said.

The officer smiled." Wheew." He wiped his forehead." Uh, I'm officer Gorman and this is officer Shepherd. We were just on a run."

Rick nodded, Daryl just glared at them. He didn't know why they were so upfront, for all they knew they _were_ going to rob them.

"Guess we can both go on our way." Rick said.

"Well, you've got children. Why keep them out in this mess, we have a hospital, it's safe."

Rick tilted his head to the side." Where?"

"The city."

"Thought that was overrun?" Maggie asked.

Gorman shook his head." Yeah it is, but we've got an area fenced off and we took over a hospital." He cleared his throat." Actually two floors, but there's plenty of room for all of you."

Rick shook his head; gripping his gun tighter." Nah, I think we're good."

"You sure? I mean, we wouldn't mind taking you in."

"He said we're good." Daryl hissed.

Gorman looked over and smirked while touching his chin, Daryl's finger was itching to pull the trigger. The officer nodded and shrugged.

"Well can't say I didn't try."

"Thank you for offering a place, but we're looking for a few of our people. We're not going anywhere until we find them."

He raised his eyebrows." Oh. Your people?"

Rick eyed the man wearily, he was suspicious but he had to ask." Yeah, you seen them?"

"I've seen a lot of people." He replied with a smug look.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The tension between them was thick, so thick that you could cut it with a knife. The sudden sound of moaning and gurgling distracted them from what Gorman had said, they all turned towards the few walkers that stumbled out of the woods. Rick shot one in the head as Maggie and Glenn dismembered two others, Daryl shot an arrow into one's skull, the female walker fell back with a thud; her head imploding. He walked over and ripped the arrow out of her skull, the other walkers lay around with bullet holes in their heads. He stepped over one as he wiped the arrow off on his pants.

"Y'all are pretty quick, could use you for security."

"Told you, we're fine."

He nodded." Alright, figured I'd give it one more shot." He turned around and so did the other officer, they both started walking back to their car." Lets get back and look for Noah and Beth." He said to the other man in a low voice, hoping that the strangers didn't hear their affairs." Guess they're still in the city."

Shepherd snickered." Guess their plan didn't work after all."

"What'd you say?" Daryl snapped.

Both Gorman and Shepherd stopped and turned around, Gorman chuckled." We had two people leave today, they're injured and-"

"You said Beth!" He stepped closer to Gorman. His hand flew to his gun, everyone raised their weapons and pointed it at him. He stopped and raised his hands.

"I-I didn't say anything. I was talking to my partner."

"I heard what you said fucker! Tell me where the fuck she is!" he snapped as he inched closer to the man.

"Daryl!" Maggie pulled him back.

He shrugged Maggie's hand off of his shoulder." No, he just said her name!"

Gorman grabbed his gun, Daryl reacted quick slamming his crossbow into his head. He stumbled as he clutched his head where the crossbow collided, Shepherd reached for his gun.

"Touch your gun, and I'll pull the trigger!" Maggie snapped as she raised her gun.

Daryl grabbed Gorman and wrapped his arm around his neck, he held his knife up to his throat and looked up at his partner Shepherd.

"Take us to the hospital."

"I-I can't."

Daryl pressed the tip of the knife into Gorman's neck; drawing a bit of blood.

Gorman panted frantically.

"Do it!" He snapped.

He held up his hands pleading with Daryl to stop." Alright Alright, we'll take you. But Dawn won't be happy!"

"I don't give a fuck." Daryl let go of Gorman, pushing him away with his foot.

Rick walked over and gripped his bicep, he gave Daryl a nod as he yanked Gorman to his feet. Daryl grabbed his crossbow. He watched as Gorman stumbled into Rick, but the bearded sheriff merely pushed the disoriented man back.

"I'm going with you." Maggie insisted.

Daryl stared at her unsure if she really should, Glenn grabbed her arm. She turned back to him and nodded.

"I have too."

Rick nodded." Alright, someone else has to go just in case something goes down."

"I'll go." Glenn said quickly.

Daryl nodded." Lets get movin' then. Ain't got all day." Daryl gripped Gorman's bicep." You best not try anything asshole, won't hesitate to shove an arrow up your ass." He pulled him towards the black charger.

"Lets go!" Maggie chided the other officer.

...

**Told you Team Family would be a huge part of this chapter :D Before anyone asks, the charger that Beth and Noah seen was the same charger! Daryl is closer to Beth than he thinks! Which means a bethyl reunion is coming up! And some Bethyl fluff! But not before some more drama.. **

**So anyways, I'm really excited about where my brain is taking this story. And I'm super happy with all the nice reviews I've been getting! Lets hope I get a lot for this chapter, if I do maybe I'll sneak a chapter in tonight or tomorrow morning.. So review, review!**

**Xoxo**


	10. Chapter 10

_Atlanta 1:10 pm._

Beth held the pistol in her hand as Noah walked down the flight of stairs, he had the shot gun as he wanted to make the officers less suspicious then if he had the pistol. Their plan was for him to walk out first and Beth would wait a bit behind and they'd do that until they made it to the first floor, then she'd try to shoot an officer and he'd stab the other with her pocket knife . At least they hoped their plan would work out, they knew plans sometimes never worked out.

But this plan had too, it was their last hope. Their only hope.

There wasn't any proof that they were even still in the building, or alive for that matter. But just to be safe, they had to have a plan. And even though it wasn't the best, for now it was better than nothing.

Beth shifted the bag on her shoulder as she waited for Noah to leave her sight before she slowly walked down the set of stairs, the walkers that were in the stairwell were no longer alive. Beth figured that due to the knife wounds in their heads. She knew the officers were around, weather or not they were in plain sight was the question that still remained.

She looked down and watched as Noah walked down another set of stairs before she descended down, they were almost to the bottom and they hadn't come in any contact with the officers...yet. It was almost inevitable that they would, it was something she was not anticipating.

Noah was cautious as he walked down the stairs, and with every corner he turned he waited for human or monster to jump out at him. Beth gave him her pocket knife so he'd have something instead of a bulky shotgun, he refused but she insisted. And she was stubborn, so he could say no.

He gripped it in his hand as he rounded a corner, he peered down the stair well that looked into the lobby. It was empty as far as he could see. And the emptiness scared him more than a room full of people. He looked up and saw Beth standing there waiting for him to walk down, he inhaled sharply and counted to three before he started walking down the last set of stairs; his heart thudding against his rib cage and pounding in his ears.

When his feet touched the landing the sound of someone cocking a gun made his heart slip into his stomach, but this was the plan and he had to keep telling himself that. He slowly raised his hands in the air, letting the shotgun fall to the floor.

"Turn around slowly, Noah."

He swallowed and slowly turned around, there in front of him stood officer Tally. He was aiming his gun at Noah's head, ready to take him out just in case he tried anything stupid.

"Where's Beth?"

Noah looked down, he shook his head slightly." S-She...got bit."

Tally inhaled." Where is she now?"

"I left her upstairs, I-I took care of it."

He looked down with a shake of his head." Dawn's going to flip."

"I tried saving her, but she lost too much blood."

"Alright, you're gonna have to tell Dawn." He lowered his gun and walked over to Noah." C'mon. We'll come back and get her later" He put his handcuff's on his wrists." No more trying to get away ya hear? next time you might just die."

Noah nodded and with one good push he was thrust into the lobby; stumbling over himself a bit. He looked up and immediately saw the black charger driving by slowly, he squinted as he watched it almost come to a complete stop. He could barely see inside due to the tinted windows, but he could still see silhouette's.

"That must be Shepherd and Gorman ."

He rolled his eyes with the mention of those officers, he never liked them. They were all assholes, which meant more of them for him and Beth to have to shoot. Just when Tally began to speak, the car doors to the charger flung open and a man holding a crossbow ran out with a woman running fast behind him. Tally raised his gun as both the man and woman entered the lobby.

"Drop your weapons!" Tally yelled.

"Fuck off." The archer grumbled. He nodded towards Noah." Who the hell are you kid?"

He swallowed." N-Noah."

It clicked, that's who the officers were talking about when he mentioned Beth. But he didn't see Beth anywhere, panic suddenly bubbled inside of him. He didn't want to think that they've come this far just to hit another dead end. Or worse.

"Where are my men?"

"None of your business." He inched closer; keeping his crossbow aimed at the man.

Noah glanced over at Tally, he was always the weak one out of the officers, but when threatened he _would_ kill. With one swift move, Noah kicked Tally - his foot colliding with his shin. The man dropped his gun and fell down clutching his leg and groaning in pain, he showed no mercy for the man as he was the one who watched Dawn beat him senseless. He kicked the gun towards the desk as Tally tried reaching for it, he stepped on the man's hand and listened as he screamed in agony.

"Please.. Please, stop!" He cried.

"Beth!" Noah called.

Daryl's eyes snapped over to Noah." Beth? She's here!"

Beth heard the commotion and was scared that something was happening to Noah, she hurried down the stairs and quickly saw that their plan had worked. Tally was down on the ground and Noah was standing over him. She glanced up and she saw Daryl and Maggie, her eyes immediately welled. They were alive, she knew it all along. Daryl stood there in shock as Maggie hurried over, Beth pushed the chair out of the way that was near the entrance when someone grabbed her from behind. She yelped as he held a knife up to her throat, pushing it into her soft delicate skin.

"Beth!" Maggie yelled.

Daryl grabbed Maggie's arm pulling her back, he let his bow slip from his hands. He slowly inched closer his eyes focusing in on Beth. He wasn't completely weaponless, he had his gun in his belt and his knife in his sheath, but the stupid fuck that had Beth didn't need to know that.

"Let her go." Daryl said as he watched Beth's eyes frantically glance between Maggie and him.

The man laughed." We need her."

Maggie cocked her gun." Let her go and I won't shoot."

"You shoot me you'll regret it."

Daryl touched Maggie's arm, she glanced over; her panicked eyes staring into his. He shook his head." Don't."

"W-What?"

"They'll kill her."

He put his hand over Maggie's and slowly lowered the gun down to her side, she inhaled a shaky breath. The man tightened his grip around Beth - pulling her into him, Daryl watched in horror as the woman he... Beth stood before him with a knife to her throat. One wrong move and she _was_ gone.

"Take me." Daryl insisted.

The man snorted." We don't want you!"

"Bob." Noah said as he moved up beside Maggie, he looked down then looked back up almost as if he were hesitating." Take me instead, she needs to be back with her family. I got no family."

Bob snorted and looked at Daryl and Maggie, then back to Noah. His arm slowly began sliding from around Beth, Noah inched closer to them reaching his now free hand out towards Beth's arm. Bob tightened his grip around the blonde once more.

"Any closer and I'll slit her fucking throat!"

Noah backed away with his hands raised some, he didn't want to get Beth hurt. Not when she was so close to going home.

"Dawn just want's Noah and Beth, I bring you two; she'll kill me."

"So?" Daryl questioned." Ain't like you matter much to me."

Bob laughed and violently pushed Beth away from him, the push was so hard that she stumbled almost falling. Daryl grabbed her arm breaking her fall, he pulled her into a tight embrace. She gripped his vest and looked up at him with a slight smile, but before he or she could say anything Daryl heard the click of a gun behind him and felt the cool metal of the barrel pressing into his neck.

"So you're the man this bitch has been complaining about." Shepherd laughed and grabbed Maggie by the hair; yanking her over to his side, she whimpered in pain." Drop the gun sweetheart, or you'll surely die."

Maggie bit her bottom lip as she let the pistol drop from her hand; it clattered to the ground, Shepherd just laughed.

"You listened. I like this one." He nodded towards Bob and inhaled." Alright, one of two things here. You all come back with us, or we take Beth back. Dawn needs her the most, but I'm sure Dawn wouldn't mind having more wards."

Daryl bit the inside of his cheek, he had Beth back and that was important. If they must take a detour, then they would. Daryl glanced behind him a little, he saw the position Maggie was in and felt his gut twist in two. He did something that he'd soon regret and he was sure of that, he nodded slightly at the man.

"Fine." He grumbled." We'll go."

Shepherd took his gun slowly away from the back of his neck." Good." he looked down at the ground." Tally get your ass up."

Beth pulled away from Daryl and looked up at him ready to speak, but Shepherd grabbed his and Maggie's arms and ushered them out. Bob grabbed Beth's and Noah's and followed out behind Shepherd.

Maggie was pushed in the station wagon first and immediately embraced Glenn who was sitting in the car with his gun pointed at Gorman's head, but once he saw how upset Maggie was he lowered it. Noah was pushed in the middle of Shepherd and Gorman while Beth and Daryl sat in the back with Bob behind them sporting a loaded gun; ready for anyone to make a move.

"Dawn's gonna be happy to see you Beth, she was worried about you."

"What does she want with my sister?" Maggie yelled.

Beth laid a hand on Maggie's arm and shook her head." I'll tell you later."

Shepherd laughed." Dawn's excited because Beth here is in a situation.."

"What the hell does that mean?" Daryl asked.

"I'm pregnant." Beth blurted out.

...

Rick and Carl sat with Judith, Mika and Tyreese while Tara went to use the bathroom. He had a really bad feeling about it all, he should've went. At least he'd know what was happening instead of guessing. He watched as Mika picked flowers and handing them to Judith every so often making her laugh, the sound of a baby laughing made Rick smile. It took a lot to make him smile after all the bullshit he'd been through in the past year.

"You think they'll be okay?" Mika asked.

Rick looked over and smiled, he leaned down and kissed the top of her head." Yeah, they'll be okay. They're strong and smart."

"Anybody seen the other three?" Tyreese asked.

Rick sighed as he stretched his legs out in front of him."They said they were goin' to find a vehicle big enough for all of us, so we're probably gonna have to stay here until they get back."

Carl looked to his right; gazing out at the road that seemed endless." Wish we were back home."

Rick laid a hand on his young son's back and gave a little rub, he knew how important a home was to him. He just wished he could provide that for him and Judith, make their lives safer finally.

"Maybe we'll find a safe place someday, but for now we gotta keep moving until we find that place."

Carl looked over at his father and sighed." Someday? someday when?"

Rick looked over at Tyreese, the man just looked down at the ground. Before Rick could speak Tara came out of the woods behind them, scaring Rick half to death. But she was all smiles.

"Guys, I think you might wanna come see this."

...

Daryl looked at Beth, shock, fear and confusion running through him. _Was it his? _

"What?" Maggie asked.

Beth looked down at her hands." I-I'm pregnant and it's Daryl's." she said her voice cracking a bit.

"Woah." Glenn mumbled.

Daryl's blood ran cold, he was caught between a rock and a hard place. First hearing that she was pregnant, then hearing it was his, and now being given a look by Maggie. He sat back and held his head, this couldn't be happening.

"What about condoms Beth! I mean, this isn't the time or place to be having babies."

"You don't think I know that!" She yelled.." I know that Maggie, I know that very well! But we can't change this, a-and I don't want to change it."

Maggie rubbed her face violently with her hands." I can't believe this."

"Can't believe what? That I'm not a little _sixteen_ year old that you can boss around? or that goody two shoes you all pegged me for? I'm _nineteen_ Maggie, more than capable of doin' a lot of things on my own. Including havin' a baby."

She sat back up inhaling then exhaling, Beth could tell she was angry just by the way her jaw was clenched. However, Beth was angry too, angry at her reaction. She expected her to be happy that she was happy. She noticed that the car quickly became silent, due to their fighting. Beth sighed and stared ahead as the car drove up a small hill, her stomach twisted in knots as the hospital came into view. She turned towards Daryl and nudged him gently, he looked over quickly.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

She nodded." I'm fine. Are you?"

"Peachy."

Her lips formed into a thin line." You don't sound it."

"Don't know how to sound fine. Bein' held hostage, ain't no reason to be fine."

She reached down and grabbed his hand; threading their fingers together, his eyes glanced down down at their hands. He was still in shock, and it probably didn't set in completely that Beth was pregnant. Under any other circumstance he probably would've been more shocked and scared even, but right now they were in a slight bind and his mind was preoccupied with so many other things. Like surviving.

"I'm five weeks." She said.

Daryl swallowed. He looked down at her stomach, _it had to be his_. He looked back ahead as sudden fear washed over him, so maybe it was finally sinking in. But he couldn't be in his head now, he had to make sure Beth was okay and get them all out alive.

"They said I'm really healthy too. I had an ultrasound and saw the baby, I got a picture too. But I left it." She frowned.

Shepherd snickered." You'll be able to retrieve your things just as soon as we get back."

"She wasn't talkin' to you asshole." Daryl snapped.

Bob pressed the gun to the back of his neck." Say one more thing cowboy, you won't ever see your kid."

Daryl's breathing picked up as his mind was racing a mile a minute, they needed to get out. He felt Beth squeeze his hand tighter and he looked over, her face was white almost as if she was seeing a ghost. He looked ahead and saw walkers, they were stumbling over each other trying to get to the car, Shepherd slowed down and spoke on his radio to the car that was behind him.

"It's a herd." Maggie said.

"We know how to deal with it." The man said.

"Sure looks like it."

Daryl glanced behind him. Bob smirked. Daryl let his eyes linger on the man as he turned back around, the herd of walkers were now closer than just a minute ago. Daryl realized that they didn't know what they were doing like they claimed. He looked over to Maggie and Glenn, they stared at him with fear and questions raging in their eyes. One of them being how the hell would they get out of this?

And to much of his dismay, he didn't know how to get out of this. Beth's hand squeezed his tighter, he knew she was afraid.

The walkers slammed into the car scaring Shepherd, the man gripped the steering wheel and put the car in reverse. He gunned it and ran into the car behind them, everyone jolted forwards. Daryl nodded to Glenn and opened the door, he hurried out pulling Beth along with him. He hit a walker in the head with his crossbow that was shuffling towards them, it stumbled back just enough for them to get out of its reach.

"Go Beth!" He shouted and pushed her ahead of him.

Bob jumped out of the car and pointed his gun, Maggie ran up behind him and shot him in the back his head. He fell back against the car, walkers eventually swarming his body. Maggie and Glenn started sprinting towards Daryl and Beth, Daryl turned around and was about to tell her to go when she grabbed his hand and began running. He didn't expect her to grab his hand, he really didn't. He started running with her almost tripping over the sudden jolt of moving after stopping for so long.

"Maggie!" Beth glanced behind her.

"She's fine!" Daryl yelled." keep running!"

Beth's legs were killing her, they ached and burned every time her feet touched the concrete. She glanced behind her and saw some walkers gaining on Maggie and Glenn, she stopped abruptly and stared at the walkers as they took out a few.

"Noah." She whispered." We gotta get him!" she turned towards Daryl and pleaded.

"Beth, we can't." Daryl said closing the gap between them." Gotta get you back to the others alright."

She shook her head." No! Noah needs to go back to his family, I'm not leaving without him!"

Daryl sighed and bit the inside of his cheek, he didn't know Noah at all. But apparently Beth did, and he meant a lot to her. He didn't know why, but he did. He looked behind him and looked back to Beth." You an' your sister hide out somewhere, me and Glenn will find him."

Maggie and Glenn ran up to Beth and Daryl, Maggie doubled over out of breath. Loud screaming coming from the car prompted everyone to look back, the walkers who were interested in the foursome turned away and started back towards the car. Beth's breath hitched in her throat as she watched the walkers tear into the man who screamed, she covered her mouth and ran over to the building. She keeled over and threw up a little, soon she felt someone come up behind her and pull her hair back.

"It wasn't him." Maggie said as she ran over." Beth.." She ran over and stopped next to her." It wasn't him. It was the officer."

She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, secretly thanking God that it wasn't. He'd become a good friend of hers and she felt obligated to see him go home to his family, like he was with her. She stood up and was handed a water bottle, she took it the bottle from Daryl and took a small sip before handing it back.

"T-Thanks." She sniffled and leaned against the wall.

Maggie put her hand on Beth's head." You're burnin' up."

"I'm hot."

She put the water bottle up to Beth's forehead, it wasn't much but maybe it would cool her down a bit.

"You eat?" Daryl asked.

"I'd rather find Noah first." She said." I owe it to him, I promised that we'd take him to his family in Virginia."

Daryl sighed and looked around." We really ain't got much of a choice do we?"

"No." She replied.

He nodded and walked to the edge of the building, he peered around and waited to see if there were any walkers. Glenn came up behind him, it became almost instinctive that you always had backup and that you always knew to back someone up. Daryl ran across the street with Glenn covering him, Maggie pushed Beth ahead of her so she wouldn't be last. Luckily the few walkers that were there didn't see them as they were devouring an animal of some kind.

"Who is this kid anyways?" Daryl asked, as they got behind the safety of a building.

Beth wiped the sweat off her forehead." A ward. He was the only one who talked to me, and the only one who wanted to get out as bad as I did."

They stopped just before an alley way and peered in, there was a rat eating something out of the trash. Beth's nose crinkled and she looked away, she had never experienced rats. Only field mice.

"He reliable?"

"Yeah.. Why're you askin?"

He sighed." Cause uh, I wanna know before we take him back to the group."

"I wouldn't lie to you."

"Ain't sayin' ya would. Just wanna know." He looked around the street; his finger laying loosely over the trigger...just in case.

The walk through the rest of the city was in silence, mainly because they needed to hear and they didn't want to be heard. Daryl kept his eye on Beth as well, it still hadn't sunk in that she was here. Up ahead rounding a corner was a man running, when Beth gasped Daryl knew it was Noah. He held Beth back for fear that walkers were the reason for him running, when he got close enough and there were no walkers chasing him, Beth ran over to him and hugged him.

"A-Are you okay!" She asked.

He nodded." He shot me."

Beth gasped.

"Nah, only a graze." He doubled over." Listen." He swallowed." We gotta go, Shepherd's back at the hospital."

"Alright let's go." Daryl said as he reached for Beth's hand. She looked over and he gave a nod, she gave him a smile; letting her hand lay within his.

...

**Yay! They're reunited, and it only took ten chapters lol I was going to drag it on some more, but I literally couldn't. And this chapter was going to be a two part chapter, but I changed my mind and so I condensed it to a shorter version, but still held drama. And of course it ain't over just yet.**

**So nope, I couldn't just off Noah yet. It's important that he doesn't die just yet, and there will be a special reason for that :D **

**And you all are lucky too, I was going to have the officers bring them back to the hospital, but I talked myself out of that. **

**So I don't remember if I said it, but Grady will still be apart of this story for a while at least. I won't tell you when they'll pop up again, and I won't tell you how. But they will. *insert evil eyes* **

**Lol enough of my rambles, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please Please Please review! **

**Xoxo**


	11. Chapter 11

Beth's eye lids drooped as her adrenaline wore off, and exhaustion settled in. She tried keeping her eyes open as Daryl drove down the road, but the yellow lines were hypnotizing. She glanced over at the speedometer and saw it was pushing 80. She looked over at him and quickly became aware of the healing cuts on his face, the sweat dripping down his temple, the dirt blotching his shoulders and arms. She slowly looked back to the road and sighed.

Daryl didn't feel entirely safe yet, he could still see the city in the mirror. It was taunting almost. He did however see that Beth staring at him and it made him uncomfortable, he hated when people studied him. He felt as if she could see everything, he _was_ trying to overcome that fear but it was hard. A life of being tormented by his father and older brother really ruined him.

"So is your group around here?" Noah asked.

Daryl nodded."Bout an hour out, maybe two."

Beth looked at Daryl and watched as his hand gripped the steering wheel with such strength, she wondered if he was okay. She frowned a little as she stared at his hands, her own hand slid on to his leg. She could feel that every muscle in his body stiffened up a bit, she looked over at him meeting his questioning eyes.

"Are you okay?" She whispered.

He nodded." Mhm." and looked back.

She nodded and turned back to the road, she looked over at the map that Noah had sitting next to him. She picked it up and immediately saw Walton circled with black marker, she ran her fingers over the circled county.

"Is this where we're going?"

Daryl looked over and saw she was pointing to the map, he plucked it out of her hand and looked at it; confused." Glenn, you circle this?"

"Um, no." He said leaning forward a bit." I don't have a marker."

"I just found it." Noah said.

Daryl nodded and handed the map back to Beth, his fingers grazing her soft and slender ones. She unfolded the map a little more and found Atlanta, they were close to where it was circled on the map. She smiled.

"We should go." Beth looked at Daryl then turned and looked at Maggie and Glenn hoping they'd be all for it, but they didn't seem amused by the idea." Why're we stayin? All's that's here is bad memories." She folded the map back up and tossed it on to the dash board.

It wasn't that Daryl didn't want to go, he just didn't want to keep moving to different places of Georgia. If they were going to leave, it would be out of Georgia. He didn't want to keep being reminded of what was, he'd rather they all start fresh, somewhere new, some place where the memories of loved ones didn't haunt them.

...

_5:35 P:M_

After what felt like an impossible car ride, they finally arrived back to the group's makeshift camp, although now there was a fire truck sitting on the side of the road making it blatantly obvious. Daryl slowed the grey pick up down just behind it and put the truck in park, Rick and the others were already at attention; hands on their weapons. Daryl wasn't offended though, it was better to be safe than sorry he guessed. When they saw it was him they relaxed and walked over.

"These people kidnapped us." Glenn said as he climbed out from the back." Shit got crazy. Barely got out." He walked past Rick over to the fire truck and examined it.

Rick stared at Daryl as he waited for Beth to step out, when she did she immediately smiled at Rick and walked over giving him a hug. He kissed the side of her head.

"Are you okay?" He asked as he eyed her cuts on her face.

She nodded." I'm fine."

"Grady Memorial in Atlanta, people are fucking nuts." Daryl laid his crossbow on the hood of the truck." Tried to take us back there, said that some chick Dawn would be happy to have more wards."

Rick nodded towards Noah who was standing awkwardly by the passenger side door." Who's he?"

"That's Noah, he was with me at the hospital." Beth said." He's a good person."

"Mind if I ask you some questions?"

Noah shook his head." No, not at all."

Rick gave Daryl a slight nod then walked over and stood in front of Noah. Maggie walked over to the front of the truck, she laid her arm on the hood as she stared at Beth. She wasn't angry, just curious it seemed. Beth looked over and Maggie engulfed her in a hug, she slowly wrapped her arms around the brunette woman and closed her eyes. But, the hug was short lived as Maggie pulled away, still keeping her hands on her shoulders. Daryl knew the questioning would soon begin. He grabbed his crossbow and shrugged it over his shoulder.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Daryl turned and looked at the eldest Greene." Was gonna let you two talk."

She shook her head." This involves you too."

He sighed and walked back over to the two; standing next to Beth, awkwardly shifting his body weight from one foot to the next. He didn't like being subjected to twenty questions, not from Merle, not from anyone.

"When did this happen?" She asked as she smoothed Beth's hair back.

Beth grabbed Maggie's hand and slowly lowered it." After the prison fell, we'd only been together for a week or somethin' and he was upset. We ended up drinkin' moonshine in a cabin that he found with Michonne earlier." She paused." We ended up fighting over what had happened, and then _it_ just happened."

Maggie frowned." It meant something right? It wasn't just to use her. Right?"

Daryl glared at Maggie, how dare she even imply that it didn't mean anything. It did, it meant a lot. He just had a hard time vocalizing that, and now with her eyes and Beth's eyes settling on him waiting for an answer, it made it that much harder. He grew incredibly nervous and had to get away.

"I'm goin' hunting." he said before turning and walking away. He gripped the strap to his crossbow tighter.

Beth frowned and looked down at her fingers." You shouldn't ask him stuff like that, he get's insulted easily."

"I'm sorry Beth, but I need to know what his intentions are. Does he plan on being with you, raising the baby with you? D-Does he _love_ you?" Maggie bit her lip." I'm just-"

"It's really none of your business Maggie, I'm nineteen. Not nine. And I imagine he will, he's a good man." Beth picked at a hangnail." I just wish you wouldn't do that to people, sometimes people get offended that you think so low of them."

Maggie sighed." I don't think low of Daryl, I just..." She looked down." I guess I thought he was one of those guys."

"Well he's not."

She laid a gentle hand on Beth's shoulder, the blonde looked up from her hangnail. She had a somber look upon her face. Maggie cupped her face with her hands and leaned in kissing Beth's cheek, Beth forced a smile as Maggie pulled away.

"I'm just worried is all."

Beth nodded." I know. And I respect that you still want to protect me, but, like I said I'm capable."

"Maggie." Glenn said coming up from behind. She turned around and Glenn smiled a little at both sisters." Can I talk.. to you for a minute." He nodded back towards where the group's makeshift camp was.

"Everything okay?"

He nodded." Yeah."

Maggie gave Beth another hug." I am so happy we've got you back."

"Me too." She replied softly.

"Beth, are you hungry? There's food back there, they found some stuff." Glenn said.

She smiled and walked past Glenn who touched her shoulder; squeezing it a bit, she enjoyed having him as a brother in-law. He was like an actual brother, always looking out after her and sometimes light teasing occurred. All in good fun though. He was better then some of Maggie's previous boyfriends that she almost called her in-law, he wasn't what she expected Maggie to be with, but he was good for her.

Michonne was up ahead in front of the fire truck holding Judith, Beth's eyes immediately welled with tears, she never thought she'd ever see that baby again. Michonne smiled at Beth as she walked over, she handed Judith to Beth who lifted her into her arms. The baby whimpered some before clutching the strap to Beth's shirt, Beth cradled her head with her hand and laid her head on top. Michonne leaned in close and kissed her forehead.

"Glad you're back." She said.

Beth smiled." I'm glad to be back." She looked down at Judith. She looked back up at the woman who's smile started to fade as her eyes roamed her face, most likely looking at the cuts but being too polite to mention them. Beth shook her head." They don't hurt anymore, I forgot I even had them."

"They fit you."

Beth blushed and looked down.

Michonne snickered." It tells a story about you and what you've been through."

She looked up and gave a small smile." Thanks."

...

Later that night everyone sat around the fire eating and waiting for morning to come, Beth had learned that Carol was the only other person missing and that the group was going to look for her as they headed towards Richmond, and how ever long that took was how long they'd search for her. Beth was saddened as the woman was like an older sister or mother figure to her and Maggie, it didn't feel right enjoying their beans without everyone there.

But not eating the beans wasn't that hard for Beth she was feeling a little sick, so it wasn't like she'd miss much. Just as the group finished eating, Daryl came back from his hunt with a few squirrels hooked to his belt, but nothing that would feed the entire group and be satisfied. If they rationed the meat then they'd have enough to go around, but it wouldn't be enough for the group. They'd more than likely would still be hungry.

"See anything?" Glenn asked.

Daryl shrugged as he scooped some beans out of the can with his spoon." Couple walkers." He shoved the spoon into his mouth." Most of the game was gone for the night, only found a few squirrel." He glanced over at Beth and noticed she wasn't eating, he nonchalantly nudged her with his hand. She looked over and gave a smile almost making it seem as if everything was okay. He swallowed his mouthful of food." You good?"

She nodded." Y-Yeah, just not really hungry is all."

She turned back to the can and swirled her spoon inside, Daryl watched her for a minute before going back to eating. The group had fallen silent by this point, the only sounds were of Judith's slight whimpering as she slept and the crackle and pops of the fire. That was, until Tyreese spoke up breaking the silence.

"So what about Carol?"

Daryl looked up feeling slightly sick from eating too fast, he put the can down in front of him and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He didn't know who the question was directed to, but Rick spoke up anyways considering he was the one who made the decisions. Daryl's answer would've been simple if he had the chance to answer.

"We're gonna find her."

"We need a plan." Maggie said.

Rick nodded." We'll think of one tomorrow, right now we need to rest. Some of us had a longer day than others." He kissed Judith's head.

"What if we don't find her?"

Everyone's eyes adverted to Carl who sat beside Rick, no one really knew what to say. It was entirely possible that they wouldn't. Beth frowned and looked down at her can of beans, her nostrils flared slightly before she finally set the can down. She felt a pang of hurt when the reality of things hit.

"We'll cross that bridge if we get to it." Rick replied; patting his son on his back.

Beth stood up quickly covering her mouth, everyone turned towards the girl as she ran from her spot next to Maggie. She doubled over near a rock - holding her hair off to the side as she spilled her dinner. Daryl stood up; swiping his water bottle and started walking towards Beth or in the direction she ran off to. She wasn't that far away, a good three feet, if that.

He set his crossbow up against the tree and walked over to Beth who was dry heaving, he laid his hand on her back. She didn't really acknowledge him, she just continued heaving. He sat the water bottle down on the rock that she was leaning over.

She looked up and sniffled, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and brushed the pieces of hair stuck to her forehead away. She folded her arms on the rock and laid her head down. Daryl stared at her unsure of what to say to her, he knew something was wrong with her when she wasn't eating. He watched as a mosquito landed on her arm, he mushed it with his thumb and wiped the bug off on his pants.

"I don't know why it's happening at night. It usually happens in the morning."

He looked down." S'it the baby?"

"It's supposed to happen, I just thought it only happened in the morning." She inhaled deeply as she sat up, she noticed the water bottle and grabbed it. She took a long and much need sip, the cool liquid ran down her dry and scratchy throat.

"You okay now?"

She nodded." I guess."

Daryl wiped his hand off on his pants as he stood up, he lent his clean hand down to Beth. She eyed it and then him, he moved his hand as he waited. Her hand finally but slowly slipped into his. She pushed off the rock as he pulled her up, with the force of him pulling and her not being quite balanced she stumbled into him, but he caught her arm before she could fall.

"Sorry." she mumbled.

He nodded." S'fine."

Maggie got up from her spot next to Glenn and walked over, she had a worried expression all over her face." Are you okay?"

Beth nodded." Yeah, just got sick is all."

"You need rest, you had a long day." She slung an arm over Beth's shoulders.

"Quit fussin' I'm fine."

Maggie scoffed." It's my job."

Beth rolled her eyes as Maggie led her back to the makeshift camp, she glanced behind her to see Daryl walking behind them; gripping the strap to his crossbow, like he always did. She sighed and turned back around, the warmth of the fire already touching her chilled skin.

Maggie handed Beth her flannel and even though Beth felt bad, she also appreciated it very much. It was chilly out and she was most definitely cold. She put the flannel on and watched as Glenn slipped an arm around her sister, she couldn't help but feel out of place. She looked over searching for Daryl, but he wasn't there in his spot.

But behind Tyreese she saw the orange glow of the cigarette amid the darkness, Daryl was there. She laid down on the thin tattered blanket that was provided for her, she watched the flames of the fire dance before finally closing her eyes.

...

**She's back with her family :D **

**Next chapter is going to include some bethyl fluff, not too much. But just enough! I feel like they deserve a bit of time alone together. **

**I want to thank all of you who reviewed last chapter, I love getting those emails. I really don't have much else to say except review (they are appreciated and they do make me write faster) so please do :)**

**XoXo**


	12. Chapter 12

_15 days._

The group had searched large portions of the thick woods that surrounded them, it'd been 15 days since Beth was back with the group and for 15 days they searched for Carol. They found subtle clues that _someone,_ not Carol, but someone was walking through the woods. Whether that person was alive now was what the group was trying to find out, but for all they know it could've very well of been Carol.

Daryl was adamant on finding her now that everyone was together again, he told Beth what happened back at the prison with Karen and how Rick sent Carol away. She was shocked that the woman would do such a thing, but she understood in a way as well. But murdering your own was under no circumstances accepted, even if It was for the group. Killing the living was only accepted if it was people like Dawn. People who threatened your life. Didn't mean she'd look at the woman differently, she'd just have a hard time accepting what she did. As everyone will Beth imagined.

Ever since Beth had been back, she was given her duties back as Judith's care taker. Not that she minded much, the baby needed someone. And Beth loved her like she was her own. Mika stayed close by Beth, she was still suffering from the loss of her sister. She didn't show it much, hardly at all. Her voice just seemed haunted when she spoke of what happened, or whenever she would stare off - her eyes seemed so far away.

Maggie was still over protective of her, making her drink and eat every time they stopped for a break. Daryl was always checking behind him making sure she was with everyone, Beth found it flattering but at the same time annoying. She was more than capable of taking care of herself, but she knew Daryl would never stop being worried. She could understand his reasoning though.

The group had stopped for another break, each leaning against a tree or sitting down against one. Everyone was exhausted, hungry, thirsty. It was a mess. In 15 days they went through their rations of water and food and were down to the bare minimal. Only Judith had more than enough.

The group would usually just find water in a creek and eat whatever Daryl caught that day, they really did depend on him and Beth knew he appreciated it. He was giving Beth more of his food to which she felt guilty about, but he explained that he never really did eat much and if he did he'd get sick. She wasn't sure if he was just saying that or if he was telling the truth, but whatever it was she wouldn't press him on it.

He walked over to her and handed her a bottle of water that he got from the creek, she stared at the clear water that was inside. Guilt washed over her as she took the bottle, it was the last of the water and everyone else had to ration what they already had. She didn't want to seem ungrateful for not wanting it, but she didn't want to seem greedy for wanting it. She watched as Daryl sat down next to her; sweat dripping down his forehead, his hair sticking to the side of his face.

"You need the water more then me."

He looked over at her almost annoyed that she would even imply that his health was more important, she was pregnant and with his child needless to say - she needed to drink and eat, and if that meant eating and drinking his rations, so be it. He shook his head." Nah."

"Why?" She asked." I already drank your last bottle, all's I do anyways is pee it all out."

"Stop bein' so damn stubborn, you need it."

She huffed and twisted off the cap and put the bottle up to her lips, she tilted the bottle and let the cool water slip down her throat. But only two sips, she had to ration despite what Daryl said. She twisted the cap back on and looked towards Daryl who was watching her.

"Happy?" She asked.

He snorted." Peachy."

Judith gripped Beth's shirt as she laid against her, Beth brushed the baby's hair off of her forehead. She was sweaty and she felt so bad for the little girl, she blew on Judith's forehead hoping to cool her off. She looked up as Rick and Glenn walked back over to the group making their presence known with their heavy footing, Beth looked over at Daryl; confused as to why he wasn't with Rick.

"Since we lost the vehicles, we have an alternative. There is an exit not far from here, rest stops are always after exits. If we can get to the exit before sunset, we can stay the night at the rest stop. There might be food, water, but most importantly there will be shelter."

It sounded like paradise to Beth, she was tired of sleeping against trees. At this point anything sounded like paradise, which wasn't good. The group was so desperate they could wind up in trouble.

"We still going to Virginia?" Noah asked.

Rick nodded." Eventually, give us some time to rest. Maybe get a plan going."

Noah nodded and looked down at his feet, he slowly slipped behind the rest of the group once his question was answered. Beth felt bad for him, he didn't even know if his family was alive, and at the time Beth didn't either. They used to be in the same boat, now they are in separate boats. One was sinking while another was sailing, and Beth was sailing. But she promised that she'd get him home, it was more crucial now since he already saw her to her family.

Beth watched Noah from her spot next to Daryl, he seemed different. They barely talked anymore, he only talked to Tara and that was even rare. She sighed and shifted Judith in her lap.

"What?" Daryl asked.

She shrugged." Just thinkin' about some stuff."

"Bout the baby?"

"No. But I wish I was." She looked down at Judith and kissed her head.

Daryl looked down at the dirt beneath him, then looked back to Beth." Then what?" He had to admit he was curious.

She hesitated a minute as she stared at Judith's hand that was in her own, she swallowed and looked over at Daryl." I was thinkin' about how long we got."

Daryl stared at her as the words she just spoke played in his head, he didn't know how to respond honestly. It was such a haunting answer that all he could do was look away, he didn't know if it was Beth or the heat finally getting to her. She was always so hopeful about everything and it didn't seem like her to start wondering about that kind of stuff. Hell, he didn't even have those thoughts.

"Why you thinkin' that way?"

She scoffed." Why not? We have no water, food, shelter. We're sittin' here dying."

"It's the heat." He said.

"No it's a fact." She looked away as tears threatened to fall." And you know it."

"No I don't."

She turned to him, her face red and sweaty. He knew the heat was getting to her, he also knew they had to get out of the heat. She already had sunburn on her arms and nose. She probably was taking care of Judith so much that she neglected her health, he reached into his bag and fished out a granola bar. He touched her shoulder, she turned and looked down at his hand.

"I'm not hungry."

He bit his cheek as he tossed it back in his bag, he wouldn't argue and so he stood up. He grabbed his crossbow and started walking into the woods, he couldn't sit there watching as she neglected her health. She wouldn't listen to him, and he wasn't going to force her. It was almost like talking to a brick wall, but he wouldn't force it. She was eating a little, just not enough for his liking.

"Please Help!"

Daryl whipped around thinking someone from the group was in danger, but it was too far away to be anyone of them. The group looked just as stunned as him. Carl took off towards the screaming, Rick cursed as he chased after him. They needed to keep moving towards that exit, without anyone slowing them down. But that was shot to hell. Daryl kept Beth behind him as they ran, Maggie was behind her with Glenn bringing up the rear. She wasn't running nearly as fast as the rest of them, but that was understandable since she had Judith.

When he got close he saw a man up on a rock fighting off walkers, or rather kicking them as one held on to his pant leg. Abraham, Rick and Michonne took out three, Daryl shot the walker that had the man's pant leg. The arrow soared through the air and pierced it's skull exiting out of it's eye, it stilled and went limp; falling backwards. Daryl lowered his crossbow as Rick helped the man down from the rock. Daryl thought he was odd, dressed in black, holding a Bible instead of a weapon. Daryl walked over and snatched the arrow out of the walker's head, he wiped the blood and gunk off on his pant leg.

"Who are you?" Rick asked.

The man held up his finger, he turned to the side and puked. Daryl scratched his head as he watched the man, it was almost as if he'd never seen a walker kill. Daryl looked behind him to see if Beth was there, she was just getting to them with Maggie and Glenn behind her. She was carefully balancing Judith on her hip. He turned back around and watched as the man stood back up wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, Carl handed the man his bottle of water and Daryl could've smacked the boy up side his head.

"Thank you." He panted as he drank what was left." I-I'm Gabriel."

"Where'd you come from?"

He panted and handed the water bottle back, Rick snatched it from the man and tossed it to the side." I asked you a question, I'd appreciate it if you'd answer."

Gabriel nodded." I have a church. I-It's not too far from here."

"How long have you been there?"

"A while. I was going to another church that has food from the annual food drive every year, but then I was being chased by those creatures."

Daryl didn't know what to think of this man, he was soft spoken and seemed a little odd. But, everyone had a _story_ he supposed. He felt Beth come up beside him; her arm brushing up against his, but he still glanced over. She was holding Judith securely in her arms as she watched the stranger speak fondly of a church, they were just talking about getting out of the heat and getting food and water. He didn't know if it was a joke or not.

"Y-You all are invited, the good Lord would want me to do the right thing. My home is yours." He smiled.

"Do you have a group?" Rick asked as they began walking with Gabriel.

He looked down." No, I did have members of my congregation with me. But unfortunately they have passed on."

"You've been alone all this time?"

"Yes. About a year actually."

Maggie frowned." How have you been surviving?"

"I usually pray whenever I leave, but I've only left a handful of times. I barricaded myself in the church, that was until food and supplies got low."

"Have you ever even killed a walker?" Glenn asked.

Gabriel shook his head no.

Daryl found it odd, he looked over at Beth and watched as her forehead creased in confusion. He knew she suspected something, he appreciated that she caught on quickly. Gabriel talked to the group almost as if he felt comfortable with them, he didn't understand that either. Everyone seemed to be sharing the same look of confusion as they followed him to the church, Daryl was worried that it would be a trap and he knew that Rick was probably just as cautious about it. It wasn't everyday they came upon someone who was sane.

"Do you trust him?" Beth asked as she leaned in close.

"No." He replied dryly.

Truth was after that whole Terminus deal, he didn't trust anyone. Especially people like Gabriel. There were many red flags that should've stopped the group from going, but they were desperate and in desperate times people did desperate things, even if it didn't feel right.

"Then why are we goin' with him? It could be a trap."

He shrugged."Takin' our chances, like you said we ain't got much time."

Beth frowned and looked down at Judith, it was harder being out of an environment that was so clean and precise. She didn't want to go back to Grady, but she did want four walls and a roof as shelter. She didn't want the trees hanging overhead and bushes that held poison ivy and oak. She was happy to be back with her family, but she expected everything to be a little different.

It didn't take very long to get to the church, in fact it was mere minutes before they arrived. It was a little white church with a small steeple, the kind of church Beth always imagined she'd get married in. Daryl stopped just in front of her preventing her from walking any further, Rick, Abraham and Michonne stood at the foot of the steps as Gabriel walked up to the door to unlock it.

"I always do this so nobody breaks in."

Daryl snorted." Really think that's gonna stop em?"

Gabriel stopped momentarily and looked at Daryl, almost as if that offended him. He turned back and started unlocking the door; hands fumbling and shaking a bit. Beth looked to Daryl and wondered if he noticed, but he was already on it and so was Rick.

"Mind if we take a look around?" Rick asked.

"S-Sure." He replied.

Rick, Daryl, Michonne and Abraham walked in their weapons drawn, Maggie, Beth and the others backed away from the church a ways just in case there was people inside. Everyone all except Gabriel, he frowned and looked down at his feet almost as if it was an insult. Beth felt for him, it seemed as if all's everyone had been doing was insulting him. She looked over at Mika and nudged her a bit, the blonde looked up at Beth.

"Do you mind holding her a minute?"

"Sure." she said.

Beth smiled and handed Judith over to her, the little girl smiled as she cradled Judith in her arms. Beth stood up and smoothed her shirt over with her hands, she started walking over to Gabriel despite Maggie objecting and trying to pull her back. Beth waved her hand at her older sister to stop her. The rest of them just stared at Beth as she turned around, she felt as if she needed to apologize. Even though she was sure he'd understand, she had a fear that maybe he didn't fully get it. She walked up beside the man and he looked over quickly; giving a smile, one that Beth returned.

"I'm Beth." She introduced.

He nodded." Gabriel.."

"We just had a lot of bad run in's with people, really bad people. That's why everyone is on edge and a little leery of things." She explained leaving out minor details, but giving him the gist.

"Oh." He exhaled." I-I understand." he smiled.

"All clear." Rick said as he walked down the stairs and over to Gabriel, Daryl walked over to Beth eyeing Gabriel and how close he and Beth were.

"I explained to Gabriel what we've all been through, and that's why we're so jumpy and on edge. He understands." Beth told Daryl. He didn't seem fazed though, just nodding in response." That was okay right? I just felt bad for him, I don't think he understood until I told him."

He nodded." Mhm."

Beth sighed and looked over at everyone filtering inside, she looked back to Daryl and grabbed his hand." C'mon, lets go inside. And cool off." She started walking but Daryl pulled her back, she looked at him feeling shy under his eyes." What?"

"I don't trust him."

"Daryl-"

"No, I don't trust him. You shouldn't either, not after... Stay close to me an' your sister. Don't go off by yourself."

She frowned with a nod." Okay." She squeezed his hand." C'mon." She forced a smile.

As they walked inside she noticed that everyone was standing around at the front with Gabriel and some were sitting in the pews getting much needed rest, Beth waited for Daryl as he and Michonne shut and latched the door. Once it was locked she slowly walked down the aisle to everyone else, she heard the heavy footsteps behind her that could only belong to Daryl. She looked around the church and noticed it's simplicity, it was beautiful in it's own way.

She sat down next to Maggie in the pew and listened to the conversation everyone was having, Maggie slung an arm over Beth's shoulder and pulled her in close. She kissed her head and wrapped her other arm around her.

Beth realized she got her wish, starting with finding her family and ending with finding shelter. She didn't know how long it'd last but for now she'd enjoy it. She looked over at Daryl and saw he was chewing his thumb as he listened, she sighed. She knew he was uncomfortable.

...

**I have to tell you, I was planning on giving you all the chapter I had written before. But literally last minute I changed my mind, I've spent about two hours re-writing this and I'm glad that I did :D **

**I plan on this being a two part chapter only because I didn't write any fluff :/ But the second part will have some!**

**Anyways, please review I'd really like to get to 100 reviews by the end of tomorrow night. If I do I'll update again so you wont be left hanging like last chapter. Btw that was really bad writers block. I have creative juices flowing today, hoping for tomorrow too :)**

**It's late so I have to get to bed, but hope you all enjoyed!**

**Xoxo**


	13. Chapter 13

_Part Two of 15 days._

Beth rested her back against the hard wooden pew as she ate a couple of crackers, half of the group was with Father Gabriel heading to the food bank while Beth and the rest stayed behind. Daryl stayed behind for Beth, and she stayed behind for Judith. And of course her child as well, Daryl didn't want to go and leave Beth, she didn't understand why she was perfectly fine with Maggie and Glenn. But Daryl protested.

He was sitting on the floor against the pew, eating some crackers that Gabriel had given Beth. She didn't want many so she gave the rest to Daryl, she knew he was starving as he'd been giving her his rations and lying about how hungry he was.

"So how far along are you?" Gabriel asked.

She inhaled and smiled as everyone turned to her, their eyes bearing into her head." Well officially, five weeks. But I'm probably well into my sixth week."

He smiled." It's been so long since there has been a pregnant woman in my presence."

Beth smiled awkwardly and looked down, she was beginning to see what Daryl was saying. He was a bit off. She didn't really trust him much, but she was respectful and nice anyways because her momma always said being kind is beautiful.

"You wanna take a walk?"

Beth looked over at Daryl a little taken back by this sudden change in him, she nodded anyways and scooted out of the pew. He waited for her as she grabbed Maggie's flannel off the seat, she shrugged it on and followed Daryl. Gabriel turned towards them as everyone else did, except a few - Abraham actually.

"Is there anywhere we can talk?" Beth asked.

Gabriel nodded." Of course. I sleep in the back room, I-I'll show you." He started walking to a door." Sorry it's a little messy, I hadn't realized I'd be having guests today." He chuckled.

Daryl rolled his eyes as he followed Beth following Gabriel, he still didn't trust the man. Something was weird about him, like he was hiding something. But, it could've just been him, he'd ask Beth once they were alone. He opened the door and held out his hand; waving them inside, Beth smiled her thanks and Daryl ignored the man as he followed Beth inside. He saw them inside and gave a smile then shut the door.

The room wasn't a mess like he claimed, cleaner than he was used to. He watched as Beth roamed around the room, she was taking in all the pictures that were on the wall and on his dresser. She seemed amazed, he didn't know why really, she didn't know who any of those people were. She turned around her hair flinging from one shoulder to the next, she stared at him looking a bit apprehensive.

"I know what you wanna talk about, and I know I was wrong for what I said earlier. I shouldn't of said it, I guess the heat really was getting to me." She paused." That and fear. So, you don't have to worry about me, I'm fine."

Daryl was listening intently, he nodded when she was finished." Ain't gotta be afraid, nothin's gonna happen."

She sighed." And you said I was naïve." She walked over and sat down on the bed; folding her hands in her lap." Is that what you even wanted to talk to me about?"

He shrugged." No, not really. But, M'glad you came to your senses."

"I get stubborn sometimes."

"Tell me somethin' I don't know." He leaned against the wall as his eyes watched her carefully. He was afraid that if he looked away for even a second that she'd be gone, and he'd be alone...again. She inhaled grabbing his attention, breaking him away from his thoughts.

He looked down at his feet as the tension in the room shifted." Guess I wanted to talk bout the baby."

Beth didn't even think he'd want to dwell on it, or be reminded of it. The more he dwelled the more urgent his search for a place to live became, she didn't want him stressing it was bad enough he was stressing about Carol.

"What do you wanna talk about?"

He waved his hand." When are you havin' it?"

"Sometime in April, at least from my calculations. They never did tell me."

That was another thing, he wanted to know what happened, what these people did and what they do. How she got those cuts, why she got those cuts. He pushed off the wall and walked over to the bed, he awkwardly sat down next to her; the bed sunk down and the springs popped. It was uncomfortable, but it was better then what they've had.

"Who's they?"

She swallowed. The painful memories coming back. She knew she'd have to tell, she inhaled sharply." Doctor Edwards, he..he was the Doctor, not someone playing one. He had worked at Grady before the turn, he knew a lot. He was the one who told me about.." Her voice trailed off.

"About what?" He pressed.

She squeezed her eyes shut and balled her fists." Dawn wanted to do t-testing on me, some kinda cure or something. She said I was perfect because I was pregnant." She looked down and opened her eyes." That's when I told Noah that we had to leave."

Biting his cheek was a habit, and also something he did when he was angry. It balanced out the red that he saw and his emotions that he felt.

"An' your scars?"

She bit her lip." I was hit by a car that night, or so they said. But I found out Noah was too, it's what they do apparently. They find people on the side of the road and they run them down. I was lucky, I survived with only a sprained wrist and some head wounds. And this." She pointed to the cut on her face." Other people weren't as lucky as me."

"What do ya mean?"

What did she mean? she wondered. She knew about Joan and what they were doing to her, she knew about the Doctors and the officers and what they did to women. She knew what they did to the wards, to Noah... Considering all of that, she _was_ lucky.

"Nothin' just, some of them weren't treated as well as I was."

"By the Looks of it ya weren't treated well."

She shrugged and looked down at her new boots, her right foot held a scuff mark. Her pants had dirt smudges and holes forming at the knee, her shirt was soiled with sweat and dirt and smelled of rotten corpses. She was sure her other clothes smelled worse. She looked back over at Daryl, he was chewing on his thumb like he always did. She wondered what was on his mind, or if she was on his mind, or the baby. She placed a gentle hand on his back and he slowly glanced over at her; his eyes tired yet alert.

"What?" He asked.

Smiling and blushing, she leaned in close as Daryl turned his head only catching the corner of his mouth with hers. She backed away with a frown, did she stink _that _bad? he looked shocked as well as she did, she didn't want to seem like a girl about things, but being rejected for a kiss wasn't something she exactly enjoyed.

He blushed, his cheeks lighting up a dark shade of red." I didn't know."

She breathed a sigh of relief, she thought it was her. But it was just a mistake, an awkward mistake between two people who acted as if kissing was something they never tried before. Like it was virgin territory, when God knows it wasn't. She scooted close to him taking his hand into hers, his eyes looked over from the door and down at her hands. She brought them up to her mouth and planted a small kiss on the back, she happened to look up and see that his eyes were sweeping over her face and hair. Beth placed his hand over her stomach, there wasn't a bump yet, maybe she'd have one soon. But for now, she enjoyed the look on his face.

His breath hitched in the back of his throat as he stared, he really couldn't make heads or tails of what he was supposed to be feeling, but he knew it was supposed to be the baby. He looked up at Beth and saw a smile forming on her face, she was happy. He wished he could be, but so many things ran through his mind that it was preventing happiness from ensuing. He'd had so much heartbreak in his life that he was never really surprised when something went wrong, in a world of drugs, sex and abuse, when things went wrong, they went wrong. But, he didn't want that now.

"It was at that house, when we got drunk."

Her voice was soft and soothing, but he detected fear behind the happiness. And he was kind of relieved, if she hadn't any he'd be worried about her. He nodded as the memory came flooding back, it was always a memory that lived in his head, it was never distant always present. It was the only thing that kept him going for those two weeks that she was _gone. _

"I know." he replied.

She blushed and looked down." You remember?"

He scoffed." What'd you think I'd forget?"

"I don't know. Guys usually do."

"I don't forget anything." He said.

He remembered and that was most important, Beth didn't think he would at all. But, she was proven wrong, and she liked that. She grabbed his hand again and brought it back up to her mouth, she planted a long kiss on the back. She could smell the scent of gun powder, the woods, crackers and sweat. He had a crooked smile on his face as he watched her, it was something that was new to him - having her kiss his body and all, but he liked it. He moved his hand and placed it on her cheek; his thumb caressing over the soft skin.

"I like your hands on me."

He snorted." Don't get me started."

She turned her head into his hand and planted a kiss on his palm before taking his hand into her own, she stood up and Daryl did too. She closed the gap between them and tilted her head up; pressing her lips to his. It was like time had stopped and nothing else existed. His lips moved slowly against hers, _too_ slow, but Beth was patient. An arm wrapped around his neck; pulling him closer to her. When she pulled away his eyes delayed a bit before opening, she couldn't help but giggle as she traced her finger over his bottom lip, he gave a tired smile in response. She lowered her arms down to his waist and laid her head against his chest.

...

Later on that evening, Rick and the others had gotten back with totes of food and water. Beth had almost cried, she never had been so happy to see canned spaghetti o's, baked beans, hotdogs, and spam She couldn't believe how much they had, if they rationed properly they could manage a week. But, with the group as hungry as they were she was almost certain that there'd be no rationing.

Daryl started easing up a bit it seemed, he wasn't as tense, but he was more discrete with his actions towards Beth. At least while the group was around, and she honestly didn't care. What they shared in the room was more than enough, it wasn't like they were ready for sex again, it was almost as if they were starting over and it would be their first time together, when that time ever happened.

"Hey Beth." Sasha began.

Beth looked up at the woman and gave a smile." Hi." she put her spaghetti o's down beside her.

She pulled a book out from the bag she had." I found this at the church, it's a book on what to expect. I thought that you'd need it." She held the book out.

"Oh.." She smiled." Thank you." Beth took the book into her hands as she wiped her mouth with her other hand.

Sasha smiled and patted Beth on the shoulder as she walked back over to her brother, Beth looked at Daryl who was looking over at the book curiously. She wiped her hands off on her jeans and eagerly opened the book to page one, **the beginning. **It was _ironic_ she thought as she read the title.

"Now that we're all together, I think we should all talk about what we want to do." Abraham said, his booming voice gathering everyone's attention." Odds are, we wont be finding this woman anytime soon. We can't be chasing ghosts, we'll end up dead. Eugene has a cure, and we have a mission to ensue. If we can get to Washington, he can figure it out. Make this whole damn plague turn around so that the living out number the dead."

"What makes you so sure that he can come up with it?" Tara asked.

Eugene cleared his throat." We have a secret underground bunker in Washington, it tests on different diseases and it's severity. There _are_ scientists in Washington, I've talked to them. They don't have a cure yet, but I do."

"Mind tellin' us what it is?" Daryl asked.

"It's classified." He replied.

Daryl snorted." Unbelievable." he looked to Rick who was sitting on the floor with Judith in his lap. He offered no expression really, he just continued letting Judith slap his face as he listened.

"I say we give it one more day of searching, then we pack up and leave. We can take the van out back, and we can all survive this if we do what's right." Abraham looked to Rosita.

Judith squeaked as she touched Rick's face, everyone snickered a bit. Rick looked at Abraham and nodded." Well, I think we have our answer then."

Abraham raised his cup of wine." Washington."

Everyone more or less in unison repeated his words; Washington. Beth sipped her sprite as she sat with one leg crossed under her watching everyone around the room, they all had smiles on their faces, like they actually had something to live for now. Beth was excited too, her child may grow up in a walker free world. She laid her chin on Daryl's shoulder and watched as he drank the wine that Gabriel provided for them, everyone was beginning to settle now but the excitement still was fresh in the air. At least she thought it was.

"You excited?" She whispered.

He looked over at her, his face pretty evident that he wasn't. She didn't know if it was because Carol was missing, or the fact that he didn't trust this move. It may not of been the safest, but, if it would give them a normal life and give their child the normalcy that it deserved, then she was ready to take that step. She brushed his hair off the nape of his neck.

"Don't feel right."

Her lips pursed." Cause of Carol?"

He looked down at the bottle of wine and gave a shrug." I'unno. Just don't feel right."

"Maybe you should just sleep on it.. When you're tired you don't think right."

"Ain't tired." He mumbled.

He honestly didn't know what the problem was, he should've been happy. But his gut was dictating otherwise, it was one of those horrifying feelings that snuck in that something just wasn't what it seemed to be.

...

**Ah! Fluff... I enjoyed writing this chapter so much :) **

**Daryl is still having issue's adjusting. Is he on to Eugene? More to come on that next chapter.**

**Getting close to 80 reviews, it's exciting! It might not be much, but it is to me. I want to thank everyone for reviewing last chapter too, and all the kind words. Thank you all for giving this story a chance, it was really hard for me to get used to writing this story actually. But now I'm thrilled every time I write, and so happy when I get a review. **

**I would still like to get to 100 reviews, but I'm happy with what I've gotten so far, its more than what I had chapter 13 of the original. That's something to be happy about :D**

**So please review! **

**XoXo**


	14. Chapter 14

The night air was cool and relaxing as the hunter smoked his last cigarette, he needed fresh air opposed to the stale air inside the church. His head buzzed as his eyes wandered the woods surrounding the church, he had a lot on his mind lately especially with Beth's pregnancy furthering each day. And now possibly a cure that Eugene claimed to have-his mind was on overdrive and it was preventing him from sleeping.

He heard the church door open and he glanced behind him, Michonne walked out on to the small porch-shutting the door quietly behind her. Daryl turned back to the woods and leaned his head on the stock of his crossbow, she walked down a few stairs and sat down beside him.

"Can't sleep?"

She shook her head." It's hot inside. need some air." She turned to him." Assuming that's why you're out here too?"

"Ain't been sleeping right for a while, nothin's changed."

Michonne snickered.

"What?"

"Nothing, just always imagined you as someone who got too much sleep."

He snorted." Mistakin' me for Merle."

Both of them went silent, Michonne's smile slowly fading. The mention of Merle was hard on both of them, but for different reasons. For Daryl, it was hard because he just wanted his brother back, he knew now that it was impossible. He figured that's what hurt the most, he was trying but Merle could've cared less.

"So Beth's pregnant." Michonne stated, obviously changing the subject.

"Yeah." Daryl nodded and his eyes flickered down.

"It's strange, I never imagined it.. You and her."

Daryl never did either, he always saw her as Hershel's perfect daughter and Maggie's perfect sister. But, she was far from the little miss perfect he dubbed her as, she had a mouth like a sailor and drank him under the table, she was bossy and demanding and didn't take his shit. But even after all that, he still felt as if she was too good for him. Better even.

"But she changed you, we all can see it." She turned to him and gave a smile." Gettin' chilly out here, better get inside."

He snorted." M'fine."

She nodded and stood up-leaving the stairs and walking back into the church, Daryl heard the door shut silently and he exhaled a breath he hadn't known he was wind blew past him, carrying a sweet night time scent. He laid his head back on his crossbow and stared out at the swaying trees and bushes with half lidded eyes, he wasn't tired, just content. Which was a first, usually when he was outside he was tense, and alert.

But, his mind was racing some, thoughts swirling of him and Beth and Michonne's recent words of how he changed. He didn't see much of a change in himself, well he did notice he was more protective and uptight about it when it came to Beth, she had to be near him or in his sights, he made sure that he gave his portion of food and water to her. It wasn't that he was being a jerk or pushy, he was worried that he'd lose her too. And he couldn't...not again anyways.

The door behind him creaked and he whipped around-startled, Beth stood there wide eyes with a small smile playing at her lips. He blushed and looked away, luckily it was dark or she'd see his face. The door shut as she walked out on to the small porch, her boots clicked as she walked down a step. She plopped down next to him and rubbed her arms.

"It's chilly out."

"Feels good." He replied quietly. He snuck a glance over at Beth and noticed she had Maggie's flannel on, the group would have to get to a store and get some warmer clothes for those days or nights that were abnormally chilly.

"Are you okay?" She asked.

He nodded." Yeah, you?"

"Tired. But I can't sleep, my mind's racin'."

His eyebrows furrowed." Why?"

"Keep thinkin' about some stuff, nothin' you need to be concerned about." She blushed and looked down." Just woman stuff."

He nodded and without another word the duo fell into silence, Daryl couldn't understand what she was going through, but he was glad that there were people-women around that could advise her in that area. If it was up to him, he'd fail miserably. After all he didn't know anything about that type of stuff.

"That book ain't helping?" he finally asked.

She sighed." It's making me worry more." She laughed." You would think it'd have the opposite affect."

"Wish I had the answers to help."

"I know." She replied.

Her lips collided with his cheek and his face immediately felt hot, he turned his head towards the woods as Beth settled back down next to him. He didn't know why her kissing him still made him blush.

"So we're still lookin' tomorrow right?" She looked down at her folded hands in her lap." I wouldn't feel right if we went to Washington without Carol."

Daryl didn't really have words, what she felt he felt too. Going somewhere without one of their own wasn't right, it didn't feel right to him. Felt like betrayal. True they didn't know where Carol was and even if they looked, they probably wouldn't succeed. And they couldn't stay in Georgia suffering in the sweltering heat and frigid temperatures, lacking food and water or a safe place. They had to move on, and tomorrow was their only chance really, it had to be the day they found her. The group wasn't going to stay any longer, and Abraham couldn't hint anymore that he was ready to go. Daryl swiped his forehead with his hand.

"Yeah. Dunno how long Rick an' them are gonna keep lookin'."

Beth nodded." We'll find her, I just know it. We already found some candy wrappers, that could've been hers." she said as she searched Daryl's face, but he offered no expression whatsoever. He just stared blankly into the woods, blinking slowly." Right?"

His eyes adverted to hers, they didn't seem very reassuring. Beth's throat was dry-she looked down.

"Could've been her, but...I don't know anymore."

She nodded." I don't know either."

"Guess we'll figure it out." he replied with an agitated sigh.

Beth laid her hand on Daryl's knee-her thumb gently caressing, he looked stressed as he laid his head back on his crossbow. Hell, she knew he was stressed, they all were. But she also knew that he most definitely felt guilty about Carol, they were close, they shared a bond. She just hoped Daryl wouldn't beat himself up about it, it was plain obvious that he felt it was his fault when it wasn't. It wasn't any of their fault.

"We'll find her." She repeated as she laid her head on his shoulder. His skin was hot to her chilly skin, she turned her head and placed a kiss on his arm. His eyes glanced over meeting hers." We will." she assured.

"Hope you're right."

She sighed." You gotta have-"

Beth was suddenly cut off when something off to Daryl's right caught their attention, rustling of bushes is sounded like. Daryl slowly stood, raising his bow towards the sound. Beth stood up gripping her knife, Daryl glanced behind him and waved his hand.

"Go, get inside."

"It's the wind." She said-but really unsure of herself.

He shook his head." It ain't the wind."

...

**Thank you for allllll the wonderful reviews! I wasn't expecting that many! lol lucky me! **

**Well not so lucky, I have writers block. It took everything I had to write this chapter. But I actually enjoyed writing it even though it's super short, that will change next chapter. ****I'm debating on who or what will be in the bushes, it's so hard since there are so many possible ideas! **

**Anyways, review! I'd love to hear what you all think of the chapter :)**

**XoXo**


	15. Chapter 15

**Another short chapter, hope you'll enjoy otherwise :) More notes at the end! Onward with the story.**

...

"Go, get inside."

"It's the wind." She said-but really unsure of herself.

He shook his head." It ain't the wind."

Beth hurried inside like Daryl demanded, she slammed the door shut and maybe a little harder than she expected. Everyone jumped up from their sleep and reached for their weapons, Beth moved away from the door and went to the window-peering out of the hole in the wood. She couldn't see anything, just the bushes moving frantically. She bit her lip.

"Beth what's going on?" Maggie's voice rung out.

"Somethin's out there."

Without thinking much, Rick hurried over to the church doors-Glenn too, and flung them open. Abraham followed them out with his gun while Rosita and Tara shut the door behind them, Beth instantly felt better knowing Daryl wasn't alone, but still was worried. She bent down and peered out of the hole again, she hoped that maybe this time she could get a better see of things, but it was hopeless. She sighed and stood back up; folding her arms with a frown.

She walked away from the windows and headed to the back towards the bathroom, anxiety and panic grew within her and she needed some time alone to think and calm herself down. Maggie's heavy footing followed behind her, she turned around and stared at her sister-teary eyed and agitated.

"I just need to be alone for a while."

"Beth-"

She shook her head." Maggie, I need to get my thoughts together okay. I just need ten minutes to breathe."

Gingerly, she laid a hand on Beth's shoulder, with a faint nod she turned away letting her hand slide off Beth's shoulder. Beth exhaled and turned to the bathroom door, she pushed it open and flicked the flashlight on until she found the lantern that Gabriel said was in there. It only lit up a small portion of the bathroom, but it was enough.

Turning towards the mirror was harder than she expected, she had only seen herself at Grady and that was more than a month ago. Her appearance had since then changed, her skin was pink from the time she spent in the sun those days before. The blonde locks she used to be proud of, they no longer held any appeal to her. They were matted down with sweat, blood and dirt. She vied for a shower.

She turned the faucet on and let the cold water spill into her hands, and it felt like heaven. She ran her fingers through her hair that was laying over her shoulder, she raked out the knots and even though they hurt, potential begun to show. She let the water fill up in her hand once more and ran it through her hair again, as she went to turn the faucet off, the water slowed to a drip then stopped all together. She frowned knowing she used up too much, losing herself in her thoughts always cost her something.

She pulled the hair tie from her hair and watched as it fell down her back, a hair cut was needed, but now wasn't the time. She knew it was silly to worry about her hair as of right now, but, before all of this doing her hair used to calm her when she'd have a bad day, usually finding tricks online and trying to accomplish it would get her mind off her problems. Maybe doing it again, she felt would get her mind off of whatever was outside, but it really wasn't. She flipped her hair over and pulled her hair into another pony tale, her hair was less matted now and more wavy.

When satisfied, she walked to the door and opened it but ran into something hard. She reared back and clutched her chest as her heart thudded against her rib cage, she looked up and saw Daryl standing there. A faint blush crept on to her face.

"Was a walker." He said.

She nodded." Oh."

"You okay?"

"Yeah." She looked up and smiled." Just needed a moment, but I'm okay..What were you doin' by the door?" She pointed to the white door with the brass handle.

He shrugged and kicked the floor." Thought you were gettin' sick or something. Maggie said you were in here."

Beth stepped out into the hallway and peered back to where everyone was, she looked up at Daryl and saw a blood stain above his eyebrow. She gripped the edge of Maggie's flannel and reached up swiping it quickly before he had much of a chance to react, she left him and walked back into the main part of the church. Daryl soon followed still trying to figure out why she did that.

"We're leaving tomorrow." Rick announced." We can't take a chance of us being overrun."

"It was only one." Glenn reminded.

Rick nodded." Yeah...Where there's one there's more."

It was true, whenever there was one there was more right around the corner. Maybe, they'd get lucky for tonight and be able to rest up a bit before having to leave, Beth thought that the group would remember that they never did stay in one place at a time.

"Where's Bob?" Sasha asked.

"You haven't seen him?"

She shook her head.

"Why would he leave?" Daryl asked as he entered into the room.

"Maybe he heard something?" Maggie suggested.

Sasha sighed." He wouldn't. Not without telling us." She eyed father Gabriel dangerously.

And in an instant Sasha ripped her knife from her sheath and stormed up to Gabriel, he backed away quickly with fear and panic in his eyes and on his face. Beth feared Sasha would kill in cold blood as she screamed in his face, _where are our people. _Beth stared in disbelief as Rick inched closer to Sasha- a hand reached towards her arm, Daryl inched closer through the pews but not quickly as Rick or Glenn.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about." Gabriel said." I know nothing about your people."

"Bullshit!" Sasha yelled.

Rick touched her arm letting her know that she had someone behind her, she glanced behind her not really caring much. The anger was radiating off of her, and nobody had ever seen her get angry the way she was now; it was quite the shock. She slowly turned back to Gabriel and stuck her knife back into it's place-her dark eyes never leaving the man.

"He could've gone off for a walk, it's stuffy in here." Tyreese said." It's chilly outside, anything is possible."

Sasha bypassed Tyreese and stomped up to the church doors, she lifted the piece of wood that latched it and threw it to the ground. She opened the doors and stepped out on to the porch-Rick, Tyreese and Glenn walked out with her. That's when they all heard the cries of a man, everyone ran to the door as the three ran off the porch, Maggie and Abraham ran out behind them over to the cries.

Bob.

Together they brought Bob inside, he was badly injured. His leg... It was cut off. There was nothing but silence and wide eyes as they laid him down on the floor. Who or what did this was evil, this wasn't the work of walkers. Daryl hurried over to the door and latched it again as Rick and the others tended to Bob, Beth without thinking ran to the back where Gabriel slept, Daryl hurried after her unsure of what was wrong or what she was doing.

"Beth?" He called as he turned the corner. He walked into the room and saw she was ripping the pillow cases off the pillows." What're you doing?"

She looked up briefly." We need somethin' to stop the bleeding."

She took the four pillow cases and rushed back out, Daryl sighed and followed her back out-lagging behind a little bit. Beth ran over to Bob and knelt down beside him, Maggie glanced over and offered a sympathetic smile as she ripped the pillow case slightly. The sounds of Sasha crying and Bob trying to comfort her haunted Beth's thoughts as she and Maggie gently wrapped Bob's leg.

"D-Don't bother." Bob panted.

Her brow furrowed." Why?"

He reached up and slowly pulled his shirt down revealing a bite mark in his shoulder, she frowned and looked down at his leg- feeling like her ambitions to save him were now a lost cause. Everyone died, and there wasn't anything anyone could do about it, she didn't know why she thought she and Maggie could. She looked back at Daryl who stood behind a few feet with his arms folded, he looked down with a slight shake of the head.

"Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Glenn asked.

He breathed a laugh." I didn't want anybody to panic, I wanted my last hours to be g-great."

Beth stood up and grabbed the rest of pillow case's and walked back towards the room, Daryl looked up and gently gripped Beth's arm stopping her from walking by. She looked at him with watery eyes, it was such a look that it bothered Daryl. His gut twisted seeing the look on her face. His tongue darted out wetting his bottom lip as he let go of her arm. He listened as her boots travelled down the hallway, and the opening of the wooden door before he pushed off the pew and followed back into the room.

When he reached the door he pushed it open slowly and saw Beth putting the pillows back in the pillow cases, he saw blood smeared on her pant leg from her hands. He stood in the door frame unsure of how to approach her, but she looked up when she seemingly sensed his presence.

"I didn't know he was bit."

"We all didn't." He replied." You did your best out there."

"I know." She paused." I just can't believe Bob I-Is..." she trailed off." It's just got me thinkin' a lot more now."

His brow furrowed." What do ya mean?"

She heaved a sigh." I was wonderin' who would be next, since there is _always_ a next. And now..." her eyes went to the door." I can't help but wonder it."

"Well stop." Daryl said his voice void of any emotions." Don't think that shit."

"I have to go back and help."

Daryl stopped her just before she could reach the door-his hand gently pressed against her shoulder, she looked up at him but barely looking into his eyes. His thumb caressed over her collarbone, that was more prominent now. But before he could do anything, there was a knock at the door. Both Beth and Daryl turned toward the white door to see Glenn poking his head inside, his face was saddened.

"They're bringing Bob in."

Beth nodded and moved away from Daryl to the door, she took a hold of the handle and opened it. She watched as Rick and Tyreese carried Bob down the hall, with everyone following behind. Surprisingly, the man was still joking, and even though this wasn't a time to laugh, everyone chose to smile or breath a tiny chuckle out of respect.

As they laid him down on the bed, he groaned in pain as his leg settled- his smile never wavering though. Sasha went to his side immediately, and Beth looked down at her boots afraid to keep watching for it was becoming too much of a horror movie.

"Thank you." He smiled.

"Nothing to thank us for." Rick said." You're one of us, we'll take care of you."

Bob smiled and turned towards Sasha with a smile still playing at his lips.

Daryl's arm slowly slipped around Beth's waist bringing her closer to him, she gave him a side way glance but nothing more as she feared he would change his mind and remove his hand. It did feel completely natural to have his hand on her lower back, and it felt completely natural to be this close to him. She leaned in close to his touch and laid her head against his shoulder, he didn't flinch nor tense up this time like all those other times before. But under the circumstances, it wasn't really a joyous occasion. She did however saver the moment for what it was worth.

...

**Another short-ish chapter, a sad one at that :( **

**What's to come next is pretty evident I'm sure, it will most likely be a two part chapter. But I'm still debating. I promised a longer chapter next chapter. But still suffering from writers block, so slowly but surely it's getting longer again as I overcome this :) I do plan on Bethyl soon in the upcoming chapters, maybe a kiss or another talk? What do you think? **

**Anyways, thanks for the lovely reviews last chapter! Please review again.**

**XoXo**


	16. Chapter 16

Hardly anyone slept except Judith and Carl that night, everyone was in their own little groups speaking softly and having their rations for dinner. The church, normally a happy place, was weighing heavy with anger and sadness as the night wore on. Bob was still laid up in the bedroom with Sasha by his side, he was alive, but barely as he occasionally slipped in and out of consciousness. Tyreese was in transit from the main part of the church to the back room for the remaining part of the night, everyone was begging him to rest as he was stressed and worried, but he refused.

Everyone regardless if they were religious prayed hard that night for Bob, for safe passage and a peaceful death preferably while asleep. It seemed more humane that way, at least Beth thought it did. She wished her father and mother could've experienced it that way, she and Maggie both. Beth looked in her book hoping to keep her mind off of things, but now wasn't the time. She shut it again and set it down next to her. Maggie, who started from across the room, now ended up next to her- she sat down with her hands folded in her lap.

"Promise me something?" she blurted out.

"I'll try." She said quietly as to not wake Judith and Carl." Promises don't go very far in this world...But I'll try."

Maggie bit her lip." Don't leave me, I don't think I can handle that. Not after losing everyone we love."

Beth immediately wrapped her arms around Maggie sensing that she needed one, she could feel her sisters tears fall on to her shirt as her hug tightened. The thought of losing her scared her, and she never did imagine that she and Maggie shared that very same fear.

"Promise me?" She whispered close to Beth's ear." You have too, I'm no takin' no."

"Promise." She replied, even though she doubted she could keep it. Eventually they'd all die.

The sisters pulled away and gave half smiles to each other, Daryl could see both were equally shaken up. They had shared an embrace after Maggie begun to get emotional, Daryl figured the stress of it all was finally coming to a head. He couldn't imagine what was said between the two, but it must've been something. As his eyes wandered the room he couldn't help but watch Judith as she slept peacefully in Carl's arms, he began to think about the small child growing inside of Beth. That would be he or she in about 9 months, snoozing in someone's arms as they were oblivious to the surrounding world. He had mixed feelings though, apart of him was ready and apart was scared to death.

He turned away from the group and sat down against the wall, all while wondering if he would be a good dad. It wasn't like he had the best example growing up, hell, he didn't even consider the man who called himself a dad his dad. He never told Beth about him, and he didn't know if he could. Those memories were buried so deep that he made the choice to forget, he wasn't getting anywhere with them.

"Hey."

He turned towards the voice, he smiled as the blonde sat down next to him. The plan to be away from the group didn't exactly go as he wanted, but he didn't mind Beth being around him. Plus, she seemed a bit rattled by everything. And he had a feeling he knew why.

"Why are you sitting over here all by yourself?"

He shrugged." Needed some time to think I guess."

"Oh." She laid her head against the wall." You want me to go?"

"Nah, you're good."

The atmosphere between them wasn't as thick as the days before, it was light and airy almost. Her hand was placed on her stomach and he honestly didn't even think that she realized it, her eyes seemed focused on the opposite wall in the hallway- almost as if she was zoning out. He nudged her arm a bit and she shook her head; blinking a bit before blushing.

"Zonin' out again."

He snorted." Better in here than out there."

She nodded in agreement.

"Been thinkin' bout the baby." He blurted out, and he didn't know why he did. He never was one to start conversations, but he guessed there was a first for everything.

Beth's lips tugged upward into a small smile." Really? What about?" The excitement in her voice showed.

Daryl turned away slightly, afraid of coming off too bold. He gave a shrug." Never mind."

"No." She frowned." Tell me."

He sighed." M'afraid I ain't gonna be a good dad, like my ol' man."

Beth swallowed the bile in the back of her throat and placed her hand on his shoulder." You will be." she scooted closer to him.

"Yeah, how do you know?"

"Because you are Daryl, not your dad, not Merle. You are you."

He turned; finally making eye contact, a small reassuring smile played at her lips almost as if she actually meant it. Though, he was waiting for her to laugh and tell him to grow a pair, but she wasn't Merle. Or his dad.

Beth leaned in close- tilting her head slightly to the side, gently her soft lips pressed against his chapped. And suddenly, it was like her first kiss all over again, but this time with someone she actually liked. Butterflies rose in her stomach and she had the sudden urge to giggle, but as she pulled away she inhaled to keep her inner school girl at bay. They were taking it slow as requested, so everything was like brand new- Kissing out of the blue, hugging, holding hands. She felt good about it.

Feeling shy and embarrassed, he looked down. It wasn't their first rodeo, they've kissed before, it was just that kiss was to soothe is worries. And he wasn't used to it. He felt Beth's hand wrap around his wrist, his hand seemed to be twice the size of her hand as she laid it in his. He bit the inside of his cheek until the faint taste of blood surfaced, and only then did he ease up a bit.

"Please don't do this to yourself." she paused." We're not going to be parent's of the year, we're gonna make mistakes. But, we'll learn from them."

Having her say this to him he had to admit, it soothed his worries more than the kiss did. Although he wasn't sure if she was humoring him, or actually being sincere. But she wasn't like those who hurt him, she was sincere and she proved it time and time again. He shouldn't of been questioning her, especially her. As she lifted his arm and snuggled close to his side, he felt as if his heart would leap out of his chest.

"Are you excited for it?"

His brow furrowed as he stared at the wall." Hm?"

She snickered." The baby."

"Oh." His head lowered as a blush crept on to his cheeks." Nervous." He inhaled sharply." Keep wonderin' if I'm gonna be like my dad, or if I'm gonna keep it safe from walkers an' people like the Governor."

"We will Daryl, you don't have to take this on by yourself, we created this baby so we have to equally take shares in it." She breathed a laugh." I mean, I'm not going to tell you to take it and have you fend for yourself. I'm going to protect it too."

His lips tugged into a small smile, that, she only saw briefly before they slipped back into a small thin line like before, she squeezed his hand and his eyes flickered down.

"As corny as it sounds, we are in this together."

Maybe he was under the impression that it was all on him, because it always _is_ on him. And with Beth, he felt that he had too. He already messed up once with her. He looked at her- with his lips pursed he gave a quick nod.

The door to the bedroom opened and Sasha slowly walked out, she didn't look at Beth or Daryl or even stop, she continued walking and looking ahead as if she were a walking dead woman.

Beth stood up first and wiped her hands off on her pants, she did offer Sasha a smile but it was no use and it was only then that she realized something was really wrong. Daryl without needing to know, hurried into the bedroom to check on Bob, but, Beth already knew. Daryl came back out a few minutes later with his head hanging low, Beth frowned and looked away.

Not long after Sasha left did Tyreese appear in the hallway, his face long and saddened. He hesitated a minute before entering the room, Beth sighed and looked down at the hardwood floors. Daryl walked over to her and placed a hand on her arm, she looked up and saw his eyes dart to the main part of the church.

His hand never left her back as they walked the hallway, when they entered the church though, his hand slipped away and gripped the strap of his crossbow as he shrugged it on his shoulder. Everyone in the room looked sad that Bob had passed and rightfully so, he was a part of the group. Beth scanned the room for her sister, but had no such luck.

Carl handed Judith over to Beth as she was becoming fussy - too fussy for him, Beth balanced the baby on her hip and slightly bounced her. Daryl eyed Beth and Judith, watching closely as Beth looked so comfortable holding the baby, like it was her nature to do so. He couldn't stop staring though not even if he wanted, she was something to watch as she tickled Judith's cheek and moved around in small circles while making faces at her.

The church doors opened catching everyone's attention including Daryl's, it was only Maggie. She frowned and turned around shutting the doors behind her, Rick pushed off the wall as confusion began to settle in. The same questioned lingered over the whole group as Rick neared her.

"Where's Sasha?"

Maggie looked up from the door, her face was regrettable." She left."

"What do you mean she left?"

"She left means she left, she started running and before I knew it I lost her."

Rick's jaw clenched as he looked on, Daryl inched closer to the man - his hand touching the back of a pew." Should we look for her?"

"No." Abraham said, his voice booming to which startled Judith." We're already wasting time, we need to get to Washington."

"Don't you have any compassion for what happened?" Beth asked over Judith's cries." I mean, Bob just died. Carol is still missin', and you expect us to still go with you?"

"Mind your business blondie." He pointed his finger.

"Hey!" Daryl snapped, his face growing hot." Don't you fuckin' talk to her like that." He inched closer to Beth while glaring at the soldier." She's right." he pointed to the blonde." We ain't goin' nowhere til we get everybody back."

Beth stared at Daryl as he walked over to her, she couldn't believe he yelled at Abraham. She looked down at Judith and swiped a tear as it slipped down her face, she bounced her some more hoping to calm her down, but with everyone's voices rising she begun to cry some more.

Daryl walked up to Beth - his face still slightly red, he stood next to her protectively as everyone debated over what to do. Beth looked up to Daryl wondering what they should do, but before she could ask, the stained glass window behind Beth and Daryl shattered. Beth screamed and covered Judith's head with her hand as Daryl pushed her out of the way, she ran down the aisle towards Maggie who had her hand already on her gun.

"Just a branch." Abraham announced over the commotion of the various screams and shattering glass." It's just a branch, everybody relax." He repeated as he inspected the large branch.

Suddenly the church doors flung open, everyone spun around- raising their weapons. Daryl hurried over to Beth with his crossbow trained on the intruders not minding that they had guns trained on all of them, and him in particular. Judith's wails _seemed_ to be the only sound between them and their uninvited guests, but the broken glass was still clattering to the ground every few seconds.

The smile on the ring leaders face was sickening to say the least, his eyes dark and dangerous, skin pale but clean. His eyes that were trained on the archer, finally landed on Rick who's gun was pointed at his face, he stepped inside over the threshold not really caring that Rick could pull the trigger in an instant.

He folded his hands together as he eyed the disgruntled group."Aren't you missing a few people?"

...

**Dun, Dun, Dun! **

**So first off, they shared a kiss! Yay :) **

**But, now there is trouble. I'm actually still debating on who the villain should be so that's why I didn't say exactly who it is, or who _they _are. But they do know that they're missing people which will be the main focus of next chapter. I will say that It could be Gareth, but that's all I'm saying *insert evil eyes***

**Anyways, review I'd love to see your thoughts on the chapter! I hope to get lots of feedback!**

**XoXo**


	17. Chapter 17

_The days were getting colder and it seemed longer, the days before were never forgotten. It seemed like they should considering, but, it built them, who they became. What they were now, would've never happened in those days before. They were something, something strong; unbreakable. They had a communication that spoke through the eyes, one look and they knew what the other wanted or was thinking. _

_As they wandered through the woods - Beth in front of him, holding his crossbow, he couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. He didn't know why, he just felt it. People never wanted to be near him, and now here is a girl who actually wants to be near him. She could leave if she wanted. _

_"What're we trackin'?"_

_"You tell me." He said; watching as she leaned over a bit - eyes zooming in on the ground._

_"Looks like a walker...The lines are all zig zaggy." She smiled._

_He shrugged." Could be a drunk."_

_She raised the crossbow back up and turned back to him, shooting a smile his way before turning back." Pretty soon, I wont need you at all."_

_His heart skipped a beat, or dropped, he wasn't sure. He swallowed hoping to swallow back his fear, he nodded." Yeah, keep trackin'."_

Daryl's body was numb as the dark haired, dark eyed man spoke, and not only how he spoke but what he spoke of. His name was Gareth. Daryl's hands begun to sweat as he gripped his crossbow, he had pulled Beth behind him after the men broke into the church, he wasn't chancing her being anywhere else but near him. He glanced over at Rick, the former sheriff's eyes were narrowing in on the dark haired man, the vein on his forehead bulging out, beads of sweat beginning to form.

"What?" His voice was cold and void of any emotions.

"I think ya heard me Rick."

Daryl bit his bottom lip." Tell us again, asshole!"

"Daryl." Beth chided.

"Should listen to your wife there."

In an instant, Daryl threw his crossbow down on the ground and lunged for the man, everyone reached for Daryl to stop him, but two men off to the side of Gareth darted over and gripped his arms - slamming him up against the wall. Beth yelped and made a move to aide Daryl, but Tara grabbed her arm and pulled her back next to her with pleading eyes.

Daryl was panting and struggling against their stronghold, Gareth was standing in front of him; smirking almost as if he had everyone in the right place.

"You know Daryl, I-"

The barrel of Rick's gun pressed to the back of Gareth's neck, he cocked the gun and Gareth smirked."Drop your gun." Rick snarled.

"Let Daryl go!" Maggie snapped.

Gareth, without any questioning or fuss, dropped his gun to the ground and raised his hands. However, the smile on his face never left. The men that were holding Daryl, let go and he ripped away from them and snatched his crossbow up off the ground and aimed at Gareth.

"You prefer to kneel or stand?" Rick asked.

"It doesn't matter, I'm gonna die anyways...Aren't I?"

"Gareth-."

"Who told you to talk?" Rick snapped.

"You all kneel yer asses down too." Daryl pointed his bow at the two men who had him earlier." Now!"

The men dropped to their knees, and begun to plead with Daryl to not kill them. Daryl shook his head and glanced over at Rick, his hand was sitting on the sheath that held the machete - pointer finger tapping on the handle. Daryl looked back, narrowing his eyes in on the two men.

"Tell us where they are." Rick said, closing the gap between him and Gareth." Or I will kill you."

_As they walked through the woods, finally picking up on something, Daryl managed to get closer to Beth. She didn't ask him why and he was glad, he probably wouldn't of been able to say anyways. They pushed through some bushes and Beth stopped and raised the crossbow, Daryl peered over her shoulder and saw a walker kneeling down next to an animal - he hoped - eating. He tapped Beth's shoulder and she nodded._

_"Want me to take it?"_

_She shook her head." No, I can do it." she whispered._

_He watched as she walked slowly, careful of her steps as he taught her - knees bending slightly so her footing was quieter. He inched closer as she moved further away, his hand was laying on his knife; finger tapping the handle, ready at a moments notice. He watched as she snuck up behind the walker, as it was completely oblivious to her. He was happy that she was about to kill her first with his bow...That was until she went down with a yelp, his whole body leapt forward before he knew what was happening._

_Beth managed to shoot the walker in the head, but it was still shuffling towards her. He ripped the crossbow out of her hands and whacked the walker, he watched as it fell back with a thud. He turned back around and ran over to Beth; dropping down to his knees, he touched her leg and moved her hand away from the bear trap that had her foot. He pried it open and Beth pulled her foot away, the trap snapped shut as it let it go._

_"You okay?" He touched her leg." Can ya move it?"_

_"I think." she moved it up and down._

_"C'mon." He stood up and held out his hand for her to take. _

_"Thanks." _

_As she stood, pain shot through her leg and she stumbled some. With Daryl's help and her own, she caught herself. Not chancing her falling behind - he wrapped his arm around her waist as she wrapped one around his shoulders, it was hard to walk properly, but they managed. As they walked through the woods, she absent mindedly laid her head on his shoulder, and since there were no walkers she figured it was safe to show some affection. _

_"You okay?" he asked quickly._

_She blushed and lifted her head." Yeah, I'm fine."_

_It became apparent to Daryl that she was just laying her head on his shoulder. What that meant - he didn't know. As they walked through the woods, the wind slightly whipping, the silence growing between them, and seemingly not a single walker in sight._

_"Should've grabbed a bigger jacket, I'm freezin'."_

_"Maybe we'll find something that'll fit ya." He looked over at her, his features soft and a smile forming on his face." Maybe, you're too damn skinny."_

_She snickered." Yeah Mag-" She hissed and grabbed at her leg - almost falling down, Daryl didn't let go though and he almost went down with her." Can we just sit for a minute?"_

_He nodded and slowly unraveled his arm from around her waist, he stood back up and looked around their surroundings. He touched her shoulder and pointed towards the cemetery and the house that sat looking over it, a grateful smile formed on her face. Daryl fixed his crossbow as she rubbed her ankle, he knelt down a little and wiggled his fingers._

_"Are you serious?"_

_"Mhm. Serious piggyback ride." _

_She shook her head and gripped ahold of his shoulders, she jumped up and adjusted herself on his back as he gripped her legs. It was uncomfortable to say the least, his crossbow was in the way and she was most likely choking him, but the gesture was beyond what she'd ever expected. _

_"Heavier then ya look." _

_"Hey." She replied._

Beth looked down at the bodies that lay on the church floor - dead, after Rick, Daryl, Abraham and Glenn took care of them. It wasn't so much that they killed them, it was how they killed them. Beth always knew they had to do things to survive, but, sometimes the things they did were much more than her imagination ever came up with. Assuming Maggie too, as she stared in shock.

Rick and Daryl however, they didn't look the least bit remorseful. And they weren't. Gareth and the few others he had with him, they were threats and needed to be immediately taken care of. And as Daryl stared at the bodies something struck him as strange, one of the men was wearing a police uniform. He didn't want to jump to any conclusions, but he didn't want to not mention it.

"Rick." He motioned for the sheriff." Take a look." He pointed to the man that was in the navy blue uniform.

Rick knelt down and both he and Daryl rolled him over - ignoring the gashes in his face, it was a safe assumption that it was one of the cops from the hospital. Rick looked remorseful now, not that he killed him, but because he didn't want to confirm it.

"We gotta finish them." he spoke in a whisper so the others wouldn't hear.

Daryl's brow furrowed." What do ya mean? I ain't goin' back there."

"I'm not leavin', we did this with the Governor and look what happened."

"Rick." Daryl paused." They ain't gonna find us in Washington."

"Yeah?" He raised his eyebrows." What about Noah? He's from Richmond and he ended up here."

Daryl's heart pounded against his chest, surely it seemed impossible for them to find the group, but they could follow them some how. As of right now they didn't have a car, they'd have to travel by foot. It'd be easier for them. Daryl looked down at the dead police officer and sighed, he looked up and Beth and caught his eye, she calmed him even though only moments ago there was turmoil surrounding them.

He looked around at the destruction of the church and heaved a sigh."Ain't safe here no more."

He nodded in agreement." We'll leave and find something, make a plan and go in there guns blazing."

"What about Sasha an' Carol, he said he had em'."

Rick shook his head."Terminus is gone, they wouldn't be stupid enough to take them back there."

The idea seemed dangerous, but Rick seemed determined. As he stood back up his head still reeling from the conversation, and feeling quite confused about it all, Beth rushed over and wrapped her arms around him. She was trembling and frantically gripping at his shoulders, he rubbed her back - awkwardly trying to soothe her. His face flushed red and he looked down when he noticed everyone staring - particularly Maggie and Glenn. He didn't look shocked like Maggie did, he just gave a small smile or the best he could after what had happened.

"I'm fine." He assured, already knowing that she would ask.

Beth pulled away with a sniffle and stared at him - eyes still questioning his safety.

"C'mon."

"Daryl." She grabbed his arm and he looked down at her hand." What's happening?"

He slowly looked up finally meeting her eyes, he wanted to answer her, but he didn't have anything. He didn't even know what was happening himself. He gave a slight shrug despite her look of panic and fear, he moved in closing the gap between them and looked down at her hand.

"I'unno." he said as he avoided her eyes." Didn't come up with anything yet, but M'sure Rick will soon. Just gotta wait."

Beth inhaled sharply." That's all we do anymore is wait."

"Beth, ya need to calm down. We're gonna figure somethin' out."

He watched as she bit her bottom lip to stop her eyes from watering, she looked down and gave a nod." If you're sure-"

"I am." he said." C'mon." he grabbed her hand; intertwining their fingers together, his thumb rubbing the back of her hand. He felt closer to her this way even though she was standing right next to him.

...

**Okay so, I'm still suffering from a bit of writers block. It's so difficult sometimes lol I feel like this was an okay chapter though, but not my best. The flashbacks were fun in this chapter because ****I try and look at them in Daryl's POV, and while everything is happening he's remembering Beth and him when they were happiest :) **

**Aside from the flashbacks, Gareth and his cronies are now dead! But now, they have to go find Sasha and Carol. And before anyone asks, no they're not at Grady. They're somewhere else.**

**Next chapter will have a bit of a time jump, just a couple of days nothing too big. Just need to get this story moving along. **

**Anyways, despite my okay chapter I'd love to hear your thoughts on it! **

**XoXo**


	18. Chapter 18

**First off before the chapter starts, I want to apologize for last chapter. Due to my writers block it wasn't great, and even though that isn't an excuse, I'm sorry. But it's made me want to try harder to bust out a better chapter, so I am going to try. However, I do appreciate the reviews that I did get, I hope you'll enjoy :)**

...

It'd been 4 and a half days since the church incident, and since then everyone moved on. When they left that night the church was swarming with walkers, the noise of everyone fighting had attracted them. Sasha was the first they came across, she was fighting off a few walkers and had been beaten up pretty badly. She explained that Gareth and his men had knocked her out and left her bound and gagged, but she managed to escape somehow - something she refused to speak about. Not even to Tyreese. But losing her lover, and giving him a quick funeral was probably enough to make her go silent.

Since they left their only safe place Rick insisted that they'd have to find another, at least a sturdy structure to sleep in over night. And there they'd come up with a stronger plan to hopefully find Carol, to which they had briefly spoken about and the possibilities. Grady was mentioned a few times much to Beth's disbelief, she feared that they'd go back. But if Carol was there then they'd have too, she was one of their own.

Unfortunately, today was an uneasy day for Beth, her stomach was off and the smell of rotting corpse's made her puke. Drinking water even made her feel sick. She figured with all the stress of the past few days it was bound to happen, but she wished it didn't. She was used to special treatment when ill, which included a bed to be sick in.

She noticed that Daryl was on edge as he walked a few feet in front of her, his whole body was tense and he barely spoke two words to her or anyone for that matter. She wasn't really worried, everyone wasn't as chipper like they used to be. Herself included.

As she trudged along behind, she laid a hand over her stomach. Seeing a pregnant woman before all of this always made her want to have a child, but those women never told her the stuff that was important to know. Like morning sickness and it's unusual name. She sighed and wiped her forehead free from sweat.

"Maybe we should slow down a bit." Maggie announced as she took in Beth's appearance.

"No I'm fine, really."

The older Greene sister placed her hand on Beth's shoulder." Beth, you're pale."

"It's the heat, Maggie I'm fine." She swallowed." I-I just need some water."

"We'll get some." Glenn said.

Beth nodded and gripped the tree behind her, Maggie moved to her sisters side practically holding her up. Daryl dropped his bow and hurried over to the other side and cradled her head as they lowered her down to the ground, Michonne handed Maggie her canteen that was almost empty, but it'd do until they found some water. Maggie wiped the sweat off Beth's forehead, and pushed the pieces of hair back. The blonde opened her eyes and blinked slowly.

"Beth." Maggie said with a sigh.

"W-What happened?"

"Passed out." Daryl said as he brushed her hair back.

She nodded slowly." I need to sit up."

Both Maggie and Daryl helped her sit up - carefully propping her up against the thin tree. She was sweating profusely but her color started to come back, Maggie took Beth's hand into hers and placed a kiss to the back. Even though the situation was still bad, he was happy that she was awake. He watched as she drank the last bit of the water that Michonne's canteen held, when she was finished she wiped her mouth and laid her head back against the tree.

"I hope nothin's wrong with the baby."

Maggie bit her bottom lip, she brushed a blonde lock behind Beth's ear." No, it's just the heat like you said. We need to find somewhere to stay."

"I just don't understand, you've spent as much time as me in the sun."

"Don't think about it." Maggie said." Just relax, Glenn and Tara went to get some water."

Beth inhaled with a nod, her stomach felt empty now and her head was slightly pounding. But Maggie was right, she needed to relax. She looked around as everyone sat down to rest, they all were burnt out - exhausted, dehydrated, hungry, hurting. It seemed like a never ending cycle of pain, she frowned and laid her head back against the tree.

Glenn and Tara were walking through the woods, it was quiet with only the sounds of nature. From much experience, Glenn always noted that when it's quiet there was danger not too far away. His hand was beginning to sweat as he white knuckled the machete, Tara didn't really seem to notice the silence, if she did she didn't seem to be bothered by it. As they pushed through some trees the sun seemed to shine out of nowhere, he shielded his face from the rays.

Tara smiled as they faced a creek, Glenn couldn't muster a smile, he had a feeling in his gut that something was about to happen. As Tara filled the bottles he searched their surroundings with an anxious eye, if something was coming, they needed to get back to the group - they were split up enough as it was.

"Hey."

He turned towards Tara who was still kneeling by the creek.

"Maybe we should follow the creek?"

"We have to ask, Rick makes the decisions." He replied dryly, his focus was on the feeling in his gut and what it could possibly mean. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned, a bottle of water with crisp clear water filled to the top was in Tara's hand. He nodded and plucked it out of her hand, she took a sip of the other bottle and nodded when satisfied.

"That's good."

"We should get back."

They both began walking back with the water bottles in their hands, Glenn still felt as if something was going to happen and he was wondering if anyone else felt this way - like someone was watching, or about to cross their paths. He finally let the handle of the machete go and rubbed his hand, it was red, raw and sweaty. He shook it hoping the pain would subside.

"You alright over there?"

He looked down at his hand." Yeah, c'mon." He pushed through the rest of the brush and he and Tara were immediately faced with weapons, they were soon dropped when the group realized who it was. Glenn heaved a sigh and looked at Rick." Found a creek." He handed Daryl the bottle of water who snatched it eagerly." Tara thinks we should follow it."

Rick's brow furrowed." We'll see how Beth is feeling, we might have to camp out here tonight."

"We need to start thinking of a plan." Abraham cut in." And, how do you even know this woman is at this hospital?"

"We don't. Gareth...we shouldn't trust his word. But, I can't help but think what if she-"

The red head sighed." Well we can't go by what if's, we need definite answers."

"I'm trying." Rick replied.

Beth drank about half the bottle before she put it down, she twisted on the cap while blushing, she hadn't realized how thirsty she truly was. It felt wrong drinking almost the entire bottle, but she felt replenished and better; less sick to her stomach, less light headed as well. She slowly got to her feet, with Maggie and Daryl still gripping her arms. Her legs wobbled a bit, but she backed into the tree and took deep slow breaths.

"You okay?" Maggie asked.

She nodded." Yeah."

"You ready to start walking?" Daryl asked.

"Yeah, Let's go." she looked between Daryl and Maggie, giving them both assuring nods." I'm fine."

...

It seemed like hours went by before they found something to stay in, it wasn't like the church, but it was something for the time being. A barn with a hay loft. It wasn't as sturdy as they'd hoped, but there was a roof. Beth sat against the ladder as Rick and Glenn built the fire, she was feeling better thankfully, but Daryl and Maggie were checking on her double, even triple if that was possible. It was frustrating more than comforting.

Daryl was around, just distant from the group. As he stood by the barn doors smoking a cigarette, he kept a close watch on her while trying not to make it so obvious. She looked down at her stomach with a sigh, Maggie said not to think about it, not to worry or wonder, but that's all she could do.

_As Beth ran the shower she discarded her clothes, first her boots, then her jeans and then the rest. Even though she was covered with clothes, her body was still covered in dirt, sweat and blood. She scrubbed diligently over her body - making sure not to put too much pressure on her foot, luckily it was only sprained, it could've been worse if it weren't for her boots._

_Daryl stared at the dresser that sat before him as he listened to the shower, he told Beth that he'd give her some privacy, but she refused and he didn't protest after that. He just sat there staring at the dark wooden dresser - delicate crosses carved around the handles. And, he couldn't help but wonder who lived here, why they weren't they there now. He stood up with a sigh and walked over to the window, he removed the thin lace curtain and peered out. _

_The cemetery surrounded the house, giving off an eerie yet safe vibe. It seemed like the dead never ventured to where the dead actually were, he didn't know why but he felt as if they could stay a while. Maybe, try and be comfortable, instead of uncomfortably under a tarp, eating mud snake and using the bushes as a bathroom._

_"Daryl."_

_He turned around and saw Beth running her fingers through her long wet hair while holding her boots in her other hand, she gave a smile as she plopped down on the bed - crossing her injured leg over the other._

_"How was it?"_

_She breathed a tiny laugh." Chilly, but refreshing." She turned around." You should take one."_

_"Nah, M'good."_

_She slowly pulled on her socks." You know you're goin' to one day."_

_"Maybe." He walked to the door." You good?"_

_She shrugged while slipping her boots on." Yeah." _

_"C'mon, got some breakfast waitin'."_

Daryl wandered outside hoping to find some food, also to clear his head a bit - everything the last few days were finally settling in, and with Beth earlier, he was still high on adrenaline and couldn't sleep or sit still for that matter. The night air was cool and brisk, but a huge relief from earlier. His skin was still hot but begun to prickle with goosebumps. The moon was oddly bright, and he was grateful or else he'd be walking completely blind.

He found a tree, a large oak tree and sat down against it. His back ached and no matter the position, it didn't seem to ease up. Having smoked all of his cigarette's, he was left twiddling his thumbs and staring up at the moon. He did that a lot as a child, since he didn't watch much TV, he'd stare up at the moon and the stars and get lost until sleep finally cocooned him. Although sleep wouldn't come, he still enjoyed staring up at the stars. It was one of the pleasures in life that he could _still _enjoy, that wasn't taken away by the dead.

As he leaned his head against the tree, he heard leaves behind him rustling. His whole body stilled and his hand reached for his bow; gripping it. Whatever it was, it was slow and watching where it was stepping, but still letting him know that it was there. He slowly lifted the bow off the ground - careful to not draw any attention to himself, he slowly stood using the tree for support.

"Don't even think about it."

Daryl's brow furrowed as the voice seemed familiar, but too familiar that it made the hairs on his arms and neck stand on end. His breathing became labored as he frantically searched around him, suddenly, before he could process what was happening, a light off to his left shone in his face. He held up his hand to block the light, his eyes were too sensitive as they adjusted to the darkness. He heard a gasp and his eyes slowly rose up from the ground.

"Daryl."

...

**Again, I'm sorry for the last chapter, it wasn't my best. I suffer from depression and it just so happened last night was a bad one for me, and usually I don't update when that happens for fear that I will have a sucky chapter. But, I'm over it now because I really enjoyed writing this chapter, and I had no trouble writing it actually :)**

**Please review! **

**XoXo**


	19. Chapter 19

"Daryl."

The archer stared - blinking a few times, letting his eyes adjust to the light of the flashlight. A mix of emotions washed over him when he finally could see, the only thing he could think about in that moment is that the woman who they all thought was dead, was there. _Carol._ he rushed over and hugged her, he was so happy. She meant a lot to him, she loved him and wanted the best for him. And he appreciated that.

"Daryl." She said almost in disbelief." Y-You're alive!" the woman exclaimed.

"Where've you been at?" he asked as he pulled away." We...We thought you were dead."

She inhaled slowly and wiped her eyes." I've been in this town, it's not far from here.. I-Is Rick alive, Carl, Judith?"

"Yeah." He exhaled a breath he hadn't known he was holding." Everyone.. They're in the barn, c'mon."

She covered her mouth and nodded, Daryl placed his hand on her back and led her over to the barn. He still didn't feel like this was real, it happened all too quickly. But he was glad that she was here, and not dead like they've all been thinking - Abraham included.

"Said you was in a town." he asked as they made their way to the barn.

She nodded." Yes, Alexandria. We can come and go as we please."

Daryl didn't know what to think, if Carol was there it had to be safe, she wouldn't allow her family to be in danger. But another part of him wondered if it was even worth trying, most places they had they always ended up leaving.

As he opened the doors to the barn, he glanced behind him and gave Carol a nod. When he walked through, everyone looked up at him. The flames of the fire danced across their dirt covered faces. Daryl looked behind him and gave another nod to the woman, this nod granted her access into the barn. She smiled as she slowly stepped inside. Maggie and Rick were the first one's up and over to her, hugging and smiling. Beth was walking over slowly, but her eyes glanced between him and Carol; almost as if she wasn't sure who to go to first.

But Carol got first dibs.

"Beth." Carol pulled her into a tight embrace.

Even though Daryl wanted to greet her, he was happy that everyone was back together. A whole again like they all wanted. He folded his arms and smiled as both women shared a much needed embrace, he glanced up at Maggie and she gave a smile as well.

"Where've you been? We thought you were dead." Beth asked as she pulled away." We've been searching for you."

Carol cupped Beth's face." I've been okay." She looked around at the others." I was picked up right after the prison fell, I was lost, hungry, tired, out of ammo." She paused."But some people came and found me, they said they had a place and at first I was leery, but after I saw the place I became grateful that they found me."

"What kind of place?" Rick asked quickly.

"A community. Alexandria, there's about sixty or so people there. Every week it seems to grow."

The group shared a look of concern, curiousness, and fear. Fear of taking that leap and later it all goes south, like the many times before. Rick scratched his chin as he stared at Carol, almost like she was a stranger. It honestly bothered Daryl, because regardless, she was family.

"Is it safe?"

She nodded." I wouldn't bring it up to you if it wasn't. I'm usually not a recruiter, Aaron and Eric are. But, Eric hurt his ankle so Aaron and I went out."

"Where is he now?"

"I don't know. A herd came through and we got separated, he has a flare gun. But, I hadn't seen it yet."

Abraham cleared his throat." How long ago was that?"

Carol looked over at the strange man - wearily then back to Rick." Over an hour."

"Isn't lookin' too good." Abraham replied brusquely.

Rick turned and gave the man a look, even though Abraham was right, now wasn't the time. Carol stared at Rick, the best of intentions written all over her face and in her eyes. Daryl's eyes flickered over to Beth and he for the first time in a long time, saw joy - pure joy written all over her face and lit up in her smile. The idea of being in a community with people and necessities that were now luxuries, was exciting, and he could tell she was. She had every right to be excited.

Carol looked down at the dirt covered ground, Rick placed his hand on her shoulder and pulled the woman into a hug.

"So now that she's here, we should leave in the morning."

"Is that all you care about?" Rosita asked." Washington isn't going anywhere."

Abraham was taken back by Rosita's outburst, everyone else though, they seemed relieved that he was finally quiet. Beth, ignoring the rest, slowly made her way over to Daryl as Rick and Carol had their moment. She expected them to be on different terms considering what happened back at the prison, but she assumed that he was grateful she was alive.

Beth smiled." Hi."

He gave a nod; a small smile toying at his lips." Hey." He watched as she placed a hand over her stomach - he swallowed and cleared his throat." Feel better?"

"Yeah." She inhaled." Kinda."

"Lookin' good..." His face flushed hot." Ya know, your color is comin' back an' all."

Beth gave a faint smile, she knew what he meant when he said it. But, it _was_ cute how he felt that he had to explain himself. She walked closer and reached for his hand, he didn't say a word or hardly blinked at all. His fingers intertwined with hers and they stood there while Carol met the new members of the group, and was reacquainted with the rest. Rick turned away from them and his smile faded into a thin line, but the reminisce of his smile still lingered.

"What do you think?" Rick asked.

Daryl shrugged." She wouldn't lie."

Rick nodded as he looked back to Carol." Yeah." He looked back." We've got too much at stake to not go, but too much at stake_ to_ go."

"I think we should." Beth cut in. She looked between Daryl and Rick - both eyes boring into her." We can't just keep runnin', we keep losing people that way."

Rick nodded and looked down, Beth let go of Daryl's hand and walked back to where she was. Only now Noah was following her over, she sat down on her blanket and Noah sat down next to her. He laid his arms over his knees, and stared down at the mess of hay that laid on the ground. She had a lot on her mind, everyone did, but they didn't have the things that she did on their mind, each were equally important of course, but hers seemed urgent. She looked over at Noah and nudged him with her arm, he snickered and so did she.

"What?"

She smiled." Don't what me, you came over here for a reason."

He shrugged and ran his hand over his head." Just wanted to see how you're doin'."

"I'm good." she laid back." Tired."

"Scared me there when ya went down." He looked down at his hands." Glad you're okay."

"Apparently I scared a lot of people today."

They fell into a comfortable silence after Beth spoke, though there was a sense of awkwardness, it'd been a few weeks since they actually had a chance to speak. Last time they actually sat down and spoke was back at the hospital, and that was not a conversation either one of them wanted to remember. Daryl glanced over at them and she flashed him a smile, his eyes flickered down a bit, but glanced back up. Beth looked down at her belly that her hand was placed over and heaved a sigh.

Beth didn't know what was going to happen, they were acting...Daryl was acting shy and distant, the most they've done was hold hands. She had a suspicion that people were wondering what they were, or if they were anything at all. But, truth was Beth didn't even know herself. She did want something more and Alexandria might be their safest bet to try, it'd give them room to explore without worrying or fearing.

"Think this place is good?" Noah asked.

Beth shrugged." I hope."

Noah turned and looked at her, probably just as shocked as she that she was hoping instead of having automatic faith. It was new to Beth also, but she's had so much happen to her that she didn't want to just assume something was safe, or that those people were good. She'd just hope and pray for the best. Assuming always seemed to get her into trouble.

As she sat there, she couldn't help but watch as Carol engulfed Judith - kissing and hugging the child, it was nice to see the group in a better mood then they've been in. Herself included. Even though she did some things a while back, it seemed like this is what the group needed.

"You hungry?"

"No." She replied.

He nodded." Alright, I'm gonna go get something." He pushed himself up off the ground and walked over to the circle that the group formed and sat next to Tara.

Beth inhaled slowly and set her head back against the ladder, as her breathing evened out her eyes begun to droop. The events of the day finally catching up with her. However, she hoped sleep would come before her mind started racing again. She was still worried.

Daryl watched as Beth rested against the hard wooden ladder, their once safe haven now gone. The quiet area with a roof that she prayed for was no longer there, probably filling with walkers. He heaved a sigh and sat down on a bale of hay, it was uncomfortable to say the least, but better than the floor. He watched as Carol bounced Judith in her arms, the baby playing with her face and cooing to herself. Rick smiling with folded arms as he watched Carol and Judith, Carl standing behind his father leaning up against the wall with a smile on his face. Daryl rubbed his head with the ball of his hand as his head begun to pound slightly, it was a long day, he needed sleep but he knew he wouldn't be able too.

Maggie stood from her spot next to Glenn and walked over to Beth - jacket in hand, prepared to cover her up since there was a slight chill in the air. She sat down next to Beth and draped the jacket over her, she placed the back of her hand on Beth's forehead and sighed. She was cool now, but still slightly warm. She begun to rub her fingers over Beth's forehead, she couldn't help it, it was something she used to do when Beth was sick. _Sometimes._

"I remember me doin' this when you had bronchitis." She giggled." Daddy said you needed your rest, but I wouldn't leave you alone."

Her eyes opened and her blue eyes stared into Maggie's green." What?" She groaned.

"I was just remembering. Sorry I woke you."

She yawned and rubbed her eyes." Oh."

"I also wanted to cover you up."

"Thanks." She replied as she pulled the jacket up to her chin." Did they make a decision yet?"

Maggie shook her head." Not yet, but soon."

"Will you wake me?"

"Yeah." She nodded.

Beth sunk down and oddly enough, she found a comfortable place on the ladder to rest her head. She felt Maggie leave her side and she sighed in content, going back to sleep was a great feeling to her. They usually didn't have that type of luxury, they would only sleep for an hour then run. Sometimes they never even slept at all. Sometimes there wasn't any time.

Maggie walked back to the group - standing close to Glenn as he stood waiting for Rick to make the call. Daryl sat on the bale of hay behind them; staring at Rick as he continued talking to Carol, he felt a warm hand on his arm and he whipped around - startled.

"Thought you were sleepin'?"

Beth nodded tiredly." Was. I can't sleep now."

"Ya need it."

"Have they decided yet?" She asked, changing the subject.

Daryl brushed some ashes off his lap and shrugged." Rick's still findin' stuff out."

Beth sat next to him on the bale of hay; hands folded in her lap, the heat radiating off of Daryl made her skin prickle. She glanced over at him and admired his features, but then her eyes took notice of his dark tan, the dirt blotching and running down his arms and neck, cuts and scrapes along his bicep and forearm.

Gingerly, she laid her fingers on his arm and begun rubbing the dirt off with her thumb, Daryl stared at her unable to figure out what she was doing. She blushed under his gaze, but never stopped. He placed his hand over hers and even though she didn't want too, she stopped; her eyes adverted to his hand and gushed at how gently his fingers encased around her wrist. Her eyes slowly rose and met his eyes.

Rick cleared his throat gathering everyone's attention, Beth turned her head slowly and focused in on the sheriff. Daryl's eyes still lingered on her though, and his fingers were still wrapped around her wrist.

"Carol says it's pretty safe, there's houses for everyone. Food, clothes, hot water, beds...safety." He looked down; pausing momentarily." We have a lot at stake if we don't go." His eyes landed on Judith." We all need a break for once, and I think we should."

"I don't mean to intrude or nothing, but what about Washington?"

Rick sighed." We need to-"

"I-I lied."

Everyone turned towards the quiet sluggish voice, silence soon ensued, and only the sounds of the fire crackling could be heard. Abraham slowly stood up - hands fisted, jaw clenched, face turning bright red. Eugene kicked the ground with his shoe, already know what was to come it seemed.

"You what?" Abraham snarled.

"I-I lied..About the cure." He paused." There isn't...one, I made it up."

"Why would you do that?" Glenn asked.

Eugene's bottom lip quivered." I've never had a purpose before." He looked down.

"You son of a-" Abraham's fist connected with Eugene's jaw, he fell backwards crashing into the old wooden pen that was behind him. Abraham hovered over him and his fist connected with his jaw once more before Rick and Glenn pulled him off." Son of a bitch, I trusted him!" he yelled.

"Calm down." Rick said.

"People died to get him to Washington." He ripped away from Rick and Glenn, he hovered over Eugene and kicked his side." Prick." he turned back around and stormed past Rick and Glenn and out of the barn doors.

...

**Hey everyone! So sorry for the long delay, life kinda got in the way. You know how it is lol **

**Carol is back with some good news for the group! Now, before anything is written I want to say that Alexandria is going to be different from what we're seeing on TV. It's going to create some conflict within the group (cause why not) but same characters though so nothing is too confusing. **

**And poor Eugene! I have a weakness for him, he's like a puppy dog lol **

**Anyways please review! **

**Xoxo**


	20. Chapter 20

It was a rather cool morning opposed to the days before, and the group was certainly thankful for it as they trudged through the woods to the possibility of a new home. The barn was now just another place in the past, just another memory.

Aaron, the man that Carol said she knew, Maggie and Sasha found when they left the barn earlier that morning. He was leading them to his community, after he gave a detailed description of the place. He and Carol knew each other, so when it came time for Rick and Daryl's interrogations she quickly defended him and his word.

Although the place seemed great, both Beth and Daryl feared the worst. Before they left, they shared a brief conversation of their worries, it seemed this time they were on the same page. But, it seemed as if everyone on some level was as well, after the farm, the prison, and the church, they didn't want to risk getting attached only for it to come to an abrupt end. It saddened Beth that such an offer she couldn't gain excitement over, even when Aaron had assured her and her baby's safety.

Carol continuously assured their safety and what Aaron was saying was true, but even if she was apart of the group - their family, it was hard to trust her word. They'd have to make that decision on their own once they got there.

It was odd and nice even seeing her in cleaner clothes, and clean for that matter. It was however, borderline embarrassing being in the filth they were in but, it wasn't like Carol didn't get it. However, she did promise them hot showers, food, and warm beds to sleep in at night once they got to the community. It's all they've really wanted, just a safe place to lay low for a while and just live.

While Beth hung back with Maggie and Sasha, Daryl helped Glenn transport Eugene as he slipped in and out of consciousness. That was another reason if not _the_ reason why the group was so eager to get to Alexandria, he needed medical attention and immediately. If it weren't for him, they probably wouldn't have left yet.

She did notice that Abraham was periodically glancing over at the three men - his eyes zeroing in on Eugene, it made sense as he'd feel immense guilt if Eugene were to die from his injuries. But, even as he checked on him from afar, he never once did ask if he was okay. Beth figured he was still angry, she was too, everyone was, he lied to them - got their hopes up for so long, and for nothing, only for his benefit.

Everyone wasn't pleased with him now, but they didn't want him to die. Beth was thrilled that there was still humanity buried within them, for so long she thought that they lost it. Daryl still had it though and it didn't take much for it to show, she saw that as he was the first and only one to volunteer to help Glenn with Eugene.

Aaron continued talking to Rick about Alexandria and what the town was like, it sounded like a dream, and the more he continued to talk the more it sounded too good to be true. She looked over wondering if Daryl was sensing the feeling, but he was preoccupied with Eugene, she did happen to catch Maggie's look though and it spoke in volumes even when she didn't.

Beth sighed and shook her head, it was for the best that's what she had to keep telling herself. It was best for the baby most importantly, the scare she had put things into perspective. She knew she would lose it if things didn't change, so regardless if she was leery of this place, she knew it was the safest thing they could do.

"Hoping they have air conditioning." Maggie announced, hoping to ease everyone's worries.

"Man, just the sound of it makes me wanna dance."

Beth smiled but wasn't sure if it was sincere or sarcasm, she looked over at Mika who was lagging behind a little, she _was_ with Carol and Tyreese, but she began walking on her own sometime while Beth was thinking she assumed. As Maggie and Sasha continued talking about central air and cold drinks, Beth slowed down a bit and placed her hand on Mika's shoulder. The little girl looked up at Beth and offered a small smile, but Beth could tell it was forced.

"What's wrong?"

Mika shrugged." I just wish Lizzie was here."

Beth frowned." She's always with you wherever you go, just like my mom and my dad, they are with me and Maggie wherever we go."

"How do you know that?"

She stared at the little girl, blue eyes on blue, she could see the pain in her eyes and Beth wondered if uncertainty showed in hers. However, she _was_ certain that they were peaceful wherever they were, but she didn't have any proof that... just faith.

"Beth."

She turned quickly and saw Daryl walking towards her and Mika, she stood up taking Mika's hand into hers; the little girl squeezed her hand as Daryl approached them, he didn't look angry, he actually looked relieved.

"Sorry."

He nodded." C'mon." He gently pushed Beth ahead of him.

Beth continued walking towards the group with Daryl walking close to her, the group was up ahead resting - not too far away from where she and Mika were talking, she assumed he saw her and that's why he didn't panic. When they grew close to the group she saw Aaron examining Eugene as Rick fed Judith her last bottle of formula, Aaron didn't look too positive about Eugene's injuries.

Maggie walked over to Beth as the three neared the group, she looked upset, but she didn't voice it...not yet anyways. She slung an arm over Beth and pulled her and Mika over to the group, Daryl shook his head slightly and stood a way from everyone.

"Thankfully we have an excellent Doctor back home. I've seen him do amazing things." He turned towards the group." Pete, is his name."

Nobody seemed all that interested as they were miserable and exhausted, but Beth was growing anxious. She looked over to Daryl who was looking around protectively, she walked over to him without Maggie noticing, she slipped her hand into his and he looked over quickly almost as if she startled him, he looked down at their hands and Beth squeezed his.

He looked back up and she gave him a smile before the group started walking again, and much to her surprise they held hands for awhile. She could sense Daryl was a bit tense as Maggie took notice, she was too actually. It wasn't everyday that she saw her holding hands with a man, it was something they would all have to get used to eventually.

_"Who's the new guy?" Maggie asked._

_"Zach." Beth replied without thinking._

_Maggie nudged Beth with her elbow._

_Beth rolled her eyes." Come on Maggie, he's nice I've talked with him like twice, it doesn't mean anythin'."_

_"Oh relax, I'm just kidding."_

_Beth shrugged as she finished folding the last of Judith's clothes, she begun helping Maggie with her clothes as silence soon ensued between them. She hated when Maggie would poke fun when she was in the vicinity of a guy, it wasn't that she did it, because she did that to her friends too, but the way she did it was annoying and embarrassing._

_"It's been a while since you had a boyfriend, not pushing you or anything, but he is your age and he's cute and there aren't many guys out there like him." She smiled."I think you two would be cute together."_

_"He's okay." She said unamused." I'm kinda not into him...And I just don't wanna get attached to anyone."_

_Maggie placed her hand over Beth's, her sister's blue eyes met hers." It's okay to live a little, we're safe here, we can finally do that."_

_Beth bit her lip." Sometimes I need to be reminded I guess." _

_"I'm here to do that...And to piss you off."_

_The two sisters snickered, though agreeing that she did in fact piss Beth off, probably more than she could ever count on her fingers._

_"Look, I'm not here to tell you what you should do either, but I am telling you to take a chance. Life is too short ya know."_

_"Yeah I know." Beth nodded._

_The two sisters began folding clothes again, but this time in a uncomfortable silence. Beth started thinking of her pros and cons of dating Zach, but all's she continued to think about was if she became too attached to him and he happened to die, she'd be heartbroken. But if she didn't take that chance, she'd be missing out. Footsteps brought her to attention and thankfully out of her thoughts, Glenn walked into the cell but slowed when he saw Beth sitting on the bed._

_"Hi honey." Maggie said._

_"Hey." Glenn leaned down and pecked her lips. He looked up and smiled at Beth." Hey Beth."_

_"Hey." _

_"Uh, your Dad want's to see you, I think Judith is giving him a hard time." _

_Beth nodded and stood from the bed, she thought she would get a longer break this time. But she was sadly mistaking. She didn't know how she'd even have any time for a boyfriend when she was expected to take care of Judith all the time, she did love that little girl and would do just about anything for, but breaks and for more than one hour were desperately needed._

_As Beth made her way into the common area, she heard some laughter - her father. She turned the corner and saw Zach speaking with her father, Carol was holding Judith as she ate her lunch. Beth couldn't believe it, Glenn lied to get her to go downstairs. She huffed as she made it into the archway, Hershel turned around and Zach looked up - She put a smile on her face. _

_"Glenn said Judith was givin' you trouble?"_

_He cleared his throat." She was, Carol's got her now..Have you met Zach?"_

_"Yes Daddy, don't you remember?"_

_"Sorry Bethy, I forget sometimes." He chuckled._

_Zach stood up." I was just telling your Dad that you're a hard woman to find."_

_She blushed and gave a nod._

_He cleared his throat." You wanna take a walk or something, it's nice out, figure might as well enjoy it while it lasts."_

_"Uh, sure I guess." _

_Zach smiled." Great."_

Beth stared at the gates of Alexandria with uncertainty crossing her features, she gripped the handle of her knife that laid in her sheath as Aaron walked up to the gate first. He wasn't lying about there being walls, Beth looked back to the woods and took in the area surrounding the community. She felt a hand on her lower back and turned back around, she looked up at Daryl with a faint blush crossing her cheeks.

"Stay alert." Daryl said quietly.

She nodded and turned towards the gate as it opened, there was another gate but this you could see through. The knot that was in Beth's stomach lessened as she saw the houses, the few cars parked outside, and trees in the strip of grass sitting in the middle of the road. She swallowed and looked over at Daryl, but he offered no expression whatsoever. She bit her lip.

The second gate opened and four people stood on the other side, three of which were men and one a woman. Aaron waved them inside, and slowly one by one all made it inside. Beth rubbed her arms as she looked around the portion of the community, the vibe inside felt different. She felt as if she could finally breathe without worrying, but that was just her. She placed a hand over her stomach and heaved a sigh, maybe this was the start of a new life for all of them. As Beth looked at each and every one of their faces, she realized that they have endured way too much and deserved a safe environment to start a new life in.

The short blonde woman cleared her throat." Is this everyone?" Her eyes darted from Rick, to Daryl to Maggie and Glenn, and each one of them gave a slight nod. She smiled and clapped her hands together." Well then I'm Deanna. Welcome to Alexandria."

...

**Hey guys! I missed this story, I've just been so busy lately and haven't had the time to sit down for more than 5 minutes. Ugh! Updating might be a bit here and there, since life is still messy right now. But I will try to update regularly :)**

**I am super excited to put my ideas on to paper (so to speak) now that they're in Alexandria *rubs hands together* let the fun begin!**

**So please review and maybe if I get enough it'll motivate me to update quicker! **


	21. Chapter 21

Daryl stared at the monitor as the nurse moved the wand over Beth's stomach, all he saw was a black dot the size of a walnut. But Beth and the nurse swore it was the baby. it was hard to imagine that it would grow up to be the size of Judith. He looked over and watched as a faint smile appeared across Beth's face, it was a different smile, one that he only saw when she was happy.

Then it hit him. She was happy.

"Can I have a picture? I _lost_ my last one."

"Sure." The brunette smiled.

Beth looked over at Daryl." What do you think?"

"It's little."

"I'm only two months. Of course it's little." she laid her hand over his." Aren't you happy?"

He nodded." Yeah, just shocked I guess."

She laid her head back and stared at the ceiling, his tone was lacking the excitement she thought he'd have, proving once again what she had conjured up in her head wrong. The nurse walked back over and handed Beth a wash cloth, she smiled her thanks and began wiping the gel off her stomach. The environment of the town felt entirely different then at Grady, it gave off a different vibe. Like, she could breathe and not be reprimanded for it. She looked up as Daryl removed his hand from the table, she frowned as he stood quickly and leaned against the wall - watching her.

"I told Maggie she could cut my hair." she said as she rolled her shirt down.

He raised an eyebrow." Why?"

"I'm tired of long hair, it gets in the way." She shrugged." Plus, its unhealthy. And with it getting warmer out an' me bein' pregnant, I won't get overheated."

Before he could say anything back, the nurse was bringing over the sonogram picture. Beth smiled gratefully as she took it from the nurse. Daryl turned away and pushed the doors open, he patted his pockets for his cigarettes as he stepped out, he was hoping to get lucky, but failed.

He grumbled under his breath and looked away as Beth pushed open the doors, he looked back and noticed that she looked displeased. For a split second he thought something was wrong with the baby, until she stopped in front of him and folded her arms.

"Could you be anymore excited?"

"What the hell are you talkin' about?"

She bit her bottom lip." It's little." She shook her head." That's all you have to say about our baby?"

He snorted." What'd you want me to say?"

"I don't know, maybe I can't believe it's healthy, or alive for that matter!"

"Don't start, you know I am."

"Whatever." She turned away from him and started walking."Jerk." She mumbled

Daryl stood there and listened as Beth stormed off, presumably to the house. It was all so sudden for him, he knew she was pregnant but seeing it on the monitor really put things into perspective for him. There was only seven months left to prepare for the arrival, yet he felt as if there were only seven days. He started walking down the sidewalk hoping that he could sneak out without being bothered, but that was almost always impossible.

"What was that about?" Glenn asked as he walked up to Daryl.

"Don't ask."

Glenn shook his head." Alright then, I won't."

Daryl looked over while shading his eyes from the sun." What do you want?"

"Oh, uh we're all going out on a run tomorrow, thought you'd like to come with us."

"Who's all goin'?" He asked.

"Me, Noah, Tara, Aiden, Spencer and Eugene."

He looked away from Glenn and down at the gates, he didn't know if he'd feel comfortable leaving especially with them. Glenn was one thing, but the rest of them he wasn't so sure about. They were all kids, and he just didn't fit in. It was bad enough trying to fit in with the folks in Alexandria.

"Nah, think Ima stay here." he looked around." I'll see if red needs my help with anything."

"Red?"

Daryl nodded." Yeah."

"Okay." He raised an eyebrow.

"Just be careful out there, 'specially with those idiots. Bound t'get somebody killed."

"Yeah thanks."

After the duo parted ways, Daryl headed back for the house. He figured he could use some shut eye, that is if he wasn't going to get any hunting in. Which was pretty clear that he wasn't today, and that was fine he supposed. It wasn't like he had to hunt to survive anymore, they had food already and plenty of it.

He walked down past a few houses, clean pristine white cottages with colorful flowers out front, and bird baths sitting next to freshly planted trees. He was like an outdoor cat trying to be an indoor cat, trying to fit in where he didn't belong. Being outside the walls, hunting, sleeping out in the woods and getting lost was his type of deal. His vacation actually.

The pale blue two story house that he, Beth, her sister and Glenn shared came into view. He dreaded what was to come of walking inside, they'd only been in the town for less than a day and they've already fought over something ridiculous. At least to him. He pulled open the screen door and immediately saw Maggie and Beth standing in the kitchen, he entered the room and their whispers stopped.

Maggie looked over." Hey."

He nodded.

"You seen Glenn?"

"Mhm, he's talkin' with the kids."

"I think I'll go see if he wants dinner now." She wiped her hands off on her pants, and gave Daryl a knowing look as she exited the room.

Beth continued staring down at the sonogram, he felt unwanted as she ignored him. He snorted and walked out of the kitchen. He couldn't figure out Beth, he was excited to see the baby, he was just taken by surprise is all and didn't quite _know_ how to react. He walked into his room and sat down on the bed, it was a bed that he only dreamt of. Soft, squishy, and no springs - not at all like the beds at the prison. He admired his small room, it was dark and only had one window. Perfect for him.

"Daryl."

He looked over and saw Beth standing there, he looked back at the lone picture on the wall. The bed sunk down and he felt her hand lay on his shoulder, she was gentle and careful as she brushed her delicate fingers over his skin.

"I'm sorry for yellin' at you like that, I guess I'm worried that you'll push me away."

He nodded." I ain't."

"I know." She bit her lip."I think we should start fresh, I know you're nervous about being here, I am too. But, we can't go yellin' at each other every time we feel something, we gotta talk." She brushed the greasy strands of his hair out of his eyes." Can we start doing that?"

"I'll try."

She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck." Good. Me too."

"Cut your hair yet?" He asked, changing the subject.

"No, Maggie has to get the scissors from Jessie."

"Who's that?"

"Pete's wife." She replied as she laid her head on his shoulder." I think you should let her cut your hair too, she did Rick's hair."

Daryl snorted." I like it long."

"I'd like to see your eyes every now and again."

"We'll see." He grumbled.

Beth sat up and ran her hand through his hair." I think you should shower first before anyone cuts your hair." She stood up and grabbed his hand." C'mon."

He stood up as she yanked him out of the room and down the hall, first Carol threatened she'd hose him down, and now Beth was dragging him to the bathroom. She opened the door and tugged him inside. The bathroom had a specific theme, the beach. He rolled his eyes as he looked around - Blue walls, white tiled floors, seashells on the towels and the knobs on the sink. He'd never been to the beach, but he felt pretty damn close to it.

She slowly slid his vest off and hung it on the back of the door, she grabbed a towel and laid it on the sink." Enjoy your shower."

"Aint gonna chaperone me?"

"No." She leaned up and kissed his lips." Make sure you use soap."

He snickered and listened as the door shut before he began slowly undressing, this was extremely odd considering he hadn't had a shower in months. He turned the faucet and waited as it heated up, he stepped inside and let the stream of warm water rain down his dirt covered body. He ran his hands over his face then into his hair, he grabbed a wash cloth and some soap and lathered up. He hated this, hated showers with a passion. Dirt was his layer of protection, and showers washed it away.

Beth found a flannel in one of the extra bedrooms, a pair of grey jeans with a hole in the knee that was previously sewn up. Perfect for Daryl. She folded them neatly and walked back to the bathroom, she knocked quietly on the door and heard a grumble. But wasn't sure what that meant. She cracked the door anyhow and poked her head inside, the steam instantly hit her face and it felt like heaven. She had already showered when they first got here, but she could go for another one.

"I found some clothes for you that you can wear."

"Just leave my vest alone." He said as he washed the soap out of his hair.

"Okay, I couldn't find socks though, but I'll ask around maybe someone has an extra pair."

"S'fine, don't worry 'bout it."

Beth huffed." I want to take care of you Daryl."

Daryl couldn't speak as he stood under the stream, she _wanted_ to take care of him. No one wanted to take care of him not even his parents or Merle, that's why he had to take care of himself, he actually preferred it that way. He heard the door shut and he tilted his head back under the stream.

Alexandria made her finally feel like she could be happy, raise her baby and take care of her loved ones. She couldn't do that while out on the road, everyone was too busy taking care of her. She pushed open the bedroom door and shoved Daryl's clothes into her hamper and pulled it out into the hallway.

The door to the bathroom opened and Daryl walked out in his new clothes, he looked stiff in them and Beth couldn't help but giggle.

"Do they fit?"

"Mhm."

"Well don't you look sharp." Carol said as she stood on the top stairs." How'd you get him to shower? I had to threaten him." She walked over with a bag in her hands.

Beth giggled." It wasn't easy. What's that?"

"Well, Jessie's dad was a barber and these are his things, she said you asked for them."

"Right." She smiled." Just put it on my bed, Maggie's gonna cut my hair tonight."

"Oh wonderful." She smiled."I'm sure your hair needs it."

"It does."

Daryl walked into his bedroom and sat on the bed, he felt exposed as his skin was clean. He knew it wasn't a bad thing, but, for him it was just too much change.

...

Later on that night after dinner and after Maggie and Glenn went to bed, Daryl and Beth sat out on the porch swing watching the lightening bugs out in the yard. It was the first time in months that they were able to sit in peace, to actually feel safe and not have to constantly look over their shoulder. Well that was for Beth, she didn't know how Daryl was feeling. And she probably couldn't pry it out of him.

"Jessie said we could use her baby clothes if we want."

"Whatever you want." he shrugged.

"Well it'll be fine if it's a boy...but if it's a girl, she'll need some colors besides blue and brown." She placed a hand over her belly.

A faint smile formed on his face, and he was baffled as to why. Maybe hearing the happiness in Beth's voice as she spoke of their child, or maybe just hearing how hopeful she was. He looked over and watched as she looked up at the sky while absentmindedly rubbing her stomach.

"You want a boy?" She asked suddenly.

Daryl swallowed." Haven't really thought 'bout it."

She smiled." I honestly don't care what it is, just as long as it's healthy and grows up strong."

"Ain't gonna let that slide by."

"I know." She rubbed his arm.

Daryl was nervous that much was true, but a hint of excitement formed in the pit of his stomach. It was something that he needed, something that would change him into an even better man. It would have to.

"Promise me somethin'."

Daryl looked over at her." Can't promise anything nowadays Beth, you know that."

She frowned." I know that." She scooted closer to him." But I need to know that you'll do this for me."

"I'll try."

"If...If something should ever happen to me-"

He turned his head away." Stop."

"Daryl." She protested.

"No!" He stood up." Nothin' is gonna happen to you alright! Already lost ya once, an' that ain't happening again. Got it?"

She looked down." Yeah."

"Can we drop this?"

She nodded and looked back up at him." I didn't mean to make you upset, I just wanted to make you aware of something."

"I don't wanna think 'bout it."

"Okay." She finally said in defeat." We won't then."

Daryl huffed and walked to the railing, he sat down and rubbed his face. They finally were comfortable with each other, and he didn't want to ruin it by thinking of the worst. He knew it was silly not to think about it, their days were numbered. All of them. But for now they didn't have to think about it, he may not of felt the most comfortable here, but those were his personal issue's. Alexandria, surprisingly was a good place despite their earlier beliefs.

"I'm gonna go inside."

"You sure?" He asked.

"I'm tired." She forced a smile.

She walked over and pecked his cheek before making her way inside, whatever she was going to say he hoped she forgot about it. He wouldn't ever want to hear what she was going to say, it wasn't something he wanted to go to bed hearing. Something of that intensity would keep him up all night for sure, and tonight would be the first night he would sleep without being afraid for his life or others. With a sigh, he slid off the railing and walked over to the screen door, he snuck one last glance at the community before stepping inside and shutting the door.

He climbed the stairs being mindful of the others sleeping, he walked to his bedroom and flicked on the light. A _light. _They had electricity, something they've gone without for so long that it become a luxury. He sat down on the bed and slipped out of his boots, his feet ached of something awful.

He laid back on the bed with an arm behind his head as he stared at the ceiling, it was quiet - almost too quiet. He was used to the echoes of the prison, or the occasional snapping of twigs. But never silence. He guessed it was just one of those things he'd have to get used to.

_"Ain't nothin' sadder than an outdoor cat tryin' to be an indoor cat."_

He turned the lamp off plunging the room into darkness, exactly what he liked. He rolled over facing the wall and closed his eyes, but images of the past kept flashing through his mind, much like a movie. And the voices echoed throughout his head.

"Daryl."

He looked up and saw Beth standing in the doorway." Hm?"

She walked inside his room and quietly shut the door behind her." Can I stay with you?"

"Mhm." He mumbled.

He listened to her feet as they tapped against the floor then stopped, he felt the bed sink down a little and her warm body mesh against his. He rolled on to his back and looked over at her, it was dark but with the light coming through the window from the moon, he could see her silhouette.

"It's weird bein' in a house, showered, fed...and not afraid." She breathed a tiny laugh." I guess it scares me a little, like it's too good to be true ya know?"

"Don't think like that." He replied.

She sighed." I'll try not to, but it's hard. Everything we've gotten used to, was somehow taken away from us."

It was hard to not disagree, everything she said was true. The Quarry, the CDC, the farm, the prison, the church. The list went on and on and he didn't want to think about what was next. He felt Beth curl into his side and lay her head on his shoulder, her warm breath on the side of his neck.

"Goodnight." She whispered.

"Night, Beth."

...

**Hey guys! I haven't given up on this story, I just needed to plan &amp; write what I wanted to happen for the next 10 chapters. It took a while, but I've gotten it down on paper. And I'm back now :)**

**This chapter was lighter for a few reasons, but it was a change from what it normally is. It was definitely Beth &amp; Daryl centric, which is always fun. But they have some concerns with their surroundings and with the future, which is typical. But, they'll work through it. Expect some minor squabbles though. **

**I have lot's of stuff planned, and I am so excited to write. I don't wanna give too much away hehe so I'll stop! **

**Please review!**

**XoXo**


	22. Chapter 22

The next morning Beth woke to light snoring, and a little sunlight shining through the dark curtains. She instantly smiled and rolled over on to her back, she felt like she had slept for days, it was definitely a sleep well deserved. Daryl had his back to her, he was wearing a cut off flannel and yet, she could still see his tattoo peaking out. She reached her hand out and carefully grasped the fabric, he suddenly moved and she froze in place.

_Shit. _She mentally cursed her curiosity. He rolled over and she quickly jerked her hand away, they locked eyes almost immediately and she blushed.

"Morning." He grumbled with a yawn.

She traced her finger over his inner arm tattoo." Mornin', how'd you sleep?"

"Like a rock. You?"

"Great." She stretched." But, I need to get up or I'll develop a lazy habit."

He snorted."You an' me both." He sat up and rubbed his face." Shit."

"What?"

He shook his head and looked behind him." You alright?"

"Mhm. I like waking up next to you." She smiled sheepishly." Why'd you pick this room instead of just staying with me? I mean." She sat up and laid a hand on his arm,"We are havin' a baby after all."

He looked down."Wanted to give you space, thought you wanted it."

Beth bit her lip as he fingers entwined with his hair, he purposely picked a separate room to give her space. She didn't know if this was a good thing or not.

"I-I don't need space." She placed her lips on his warm shoulder." I used to like it, but, after Grady...I don't want it. I want to be with you."

Daryl looked over; eyes flicking back and forth from her eyes to her lips, Beth smiled and closed the gap between them - placing her lips on his. She scrunched his hair in her hand and threaded her fingers through the greasy locks, as he gently laid on her lower back. It was a kiss that started out short and sweet, that ended up a little heated. Both of them pulled away before their hands got to roaming, and both of them blushed like mad. Beth looked down as she nonchalantly dabbed the corners of her mouth.

"Got morning breath."

She giggled."Hey, no fair you do too!" she smacked his arm.

There was a knock on the bedroom door and they both looked up, Daryl mumbled an incoherent _come in _and they waited and watched as the door slowly opened. Michonne poked her head in and instantly gave a lop sided smile, Daryl cleared his throat and began climbing out of bed.

"Glad to see you two together."

Daryl grunted and stood up with his boots."Did you need something?"

"Well I was going to wait, but I was told to tell you now. We all have to do an interview with Deanna and get our jobs, then later she's hosting a party at her house. She's invited all of us."

Beth smiled as she raked her fingers through her hair." A party? Like with music and food?"

"That's usually what one consists of." Michonne smiled.

Daryl pushed past her and walked to the bathroom, Beth frowned as she slid out of bed. Michonne inched her way inside curiously and folded her arms, she was clearly sensing something. Beth slipped on her slippers, or the slippers she found in her closet and peered out of the window.

"He doesn't feel comfortable here." She pulled her hair over her shoulder and began braiding." It's a childhood thing I guess."

"Some people need time to adjust, it's only normal."

Beth nodded." I'm used to it, the fancy house, food, comfy beds and nice clothes...He's not, he never had any of that." She heaved a sigh and turned around."When we were alone, we found this old trailer in the woods and he said it looked exactly like the one he used to live in. But, it was trash, and it was tacky... I feel so bad that he had to live in a place like that."

"We can all start fresh, we have that option now." Michonne assured." But, we have to keep the past the past."

"Tell him that."

Michonne stopped Beth from leaving." I'm telling you. He needs to hear it from _you_."

Beth blinked a few times and gave a nod." Alright, I'll try. But he won't listen."

"Men never do."

Beth cracked a smile.

"You just have to know how to deal with them." She patted Beth's back." You have a good head on your shoulders, I'm sure you'll figure it out."

She gave a quick smile and for a second she actually believed it, but she came face to face with Daryl as he walked out of the bathroom, and suddenly found herself frowning. She would wait a while before even attempting to talk to him about that, they had just became comfortable with each other so she wasn't going to ruin what they had. She forced a smile as she walked over, Michonne excused herself quietly and walked down the stairs. Both Beth and Daryl watched her walk away before turning to each other.

"Did you shower?"

"No." he replied.

Beth took the clothes out of his hands." From today on, you're staying with me, got it?"

He sneered."Yes ma'am."

It was sarcastic, but still a cute response. At least to Beth, she knew some people wouldn't think it was though.

"Good." She walked into her room and threw the clothes in the hamper." I'm gonna shower, will you tell Maggie for me?"

He nodded and watched as she walked into the bathroom, when the door shut he heard nothing but silence...well except for Beth beginning to brush her teeth, and the kids screaming outside as they played. It was all too weird for him, but he'd do it. Not because he wanted to, but because he didn't want to be alone again. He was alone all his life, left only with his thoughts. Sometimes they were dark, too dark even for him. And he didn't want that anymore, he just didn't know how to fit in like the others.

He sighed as he stepped into the bright bedroom Beth called hers and he'd soon call his too, the walls were painted grey, and like the rest of the house there were hardwood floors, there was also a white fuzzy rug in the middle of the room to complete the look.

It was made quite obvious that this _was_ the type of girl Beth was before, she liked neatness and colors, and cleanliness. He definitely didn't fit in. Not in this room, not in this town. He walked around looking at the little knick knacks on the dresser and night stand, some were religious, some were cute and chic, and some were just plain weird. But it worked. And above her bed was a shelf with wooden words.

_Live, Laugh, Love_

Daryl snorted and turned to leave when something shiny caught his attention, he walked over to the night stand and saw Beth's necklace sitting there coiled neatly. A piece of black stiff string holding together a beautiful silver cross. It was his idea back at the prison, it broke and she was really upset. But she was grateful for his suggestion. He didn't know why she wasn't wearing it, or when she had left it in here. He placed his hand over top of it and slid it off of the table, he walked out of the room rubbing his thumb over the smooth surface before pocketing it.

...

"Do you want to tell me your story?"

Daryl looked over from the window." Ain't got much to tell."

Deanna nodded wearily." Well, who is Daryl. For example - Is he a good man, does he have a purpose in the group, does he have a family?"

"Mhm." He mumbled. The woman scribbled down on her notepad and his brow furrowed.." What're you doin?"

"I like to keep tabs of everyone, we don't want people who'll harm our community staying here." She smiled politely.

"Why didn't you do this yesterday? Tryin' to give us a taste of what we can have then take it away?"

She shook her head." No, of course not."

He snorted.

"Daryl, talk to me."

"What am I supposed to say?"

She shrugged." Talk about your family? Your hunting skills."

He looked over and licked his bottom lip." How'd you know 'bout that?"

"I spoke to Rick and he might've mentioned it."

Daryl felt defeated, he looked down at the floor and tried pushing the voices out of his head. The bad one's telling him that this was all too good to be true - the one's he always mistook for being his better judgment. Deanna looked over at Beth and wrote her name down on the paper, while Daryl sat back down on the couch next to Beth. He propped his chin up with his hand and continued looking out the window.

"Beth, why don't you tell me your story."

She inhaled with a nervous smile." Well there's a lot."

Deanna smiled." I have a ton of paper."

Beth looked down at her hands." We were at my farm two years ago, we stayed there for a couple of months after Rick's group showed up. But people started dying an' then a herd passed through and it was too big for us, so we had to leave. We thought about goin' back, but a herd of that size probably took the house down."

"So what did you do?" She asked.

"We kept runnin', all winter and spring. But then Lori was about to have the baby an' we needed to find a place, that's when we found the prison. We lost people the first few days we were there." Beth frowned." Then more people showed up later, Tyreese and Sasha included. We turned the prison into a home, and we brought more people in. I finally got a boyfriend. Carl finally got some friends, it was great."

Deanna nodded."Then what happened?"

"Someone messed it up for us, an' we had to run again. Only this time we were all separated." She looked to Daryl then back." Then I was kidnapped."

The older woman looked horrified." Who would do such a thing?"

Beth sucked in a breath." These people at this hospital in Atlanta, they had a lot of patients there. And we all pretty much had the same story. The head officer, she was abusive to us all. Noah and I met there, he helped me escape."

"Oh dear." She covered her mouth." I'm so sorry."

"Well the one good thing came out of it though, I found out I was pregnant an' had an ultrasound." She tried smiling but failed."It was overshadowed by the fact that I was alone. I didn't have my family, and I thought I was gonna have this baby alone." she frowned again." So I wasn't excited then, not like I am now."

Memories of Grady hit Beth like a ton of bricks, for so long she had blocked it out of her mind. She didn't want to ever think about it again, like Michonne said, they had to keep the past the past. And she wanted it that way, unfortunately it wasn't something that would ever go away. Her scars would never go away, they would forever be a constant reminder of what happened. But on the plus side, she really didn't know what she was made of until she had to fight for her survival. She had no idea how strong she truly was.

"Well, I'm glad you and your baby are okay."

"Me too."

She cleared her throat." You know we have jobs here right?"

"Yes, Michonne told us this morning."

"Well, I think I'd like it if you and your sister could help me, a lot of people here need extensive therapy. And since I used to be a therapist, I figured I'd give it a shot. But it's not easy with the younger one's, they're so quick to dismiss me and what I have to say then their parents or guardian get angry with me."

Beth nodded." Well what would I be doing?"

"Officially you will be guidance, you will talk with them, and maybe talk about some good times. Try to soften them up a bit."

She chanced and glance at Daryl hoping he would at least be paying attention, but he wasn't, he was too busy staring out of the window. She wondered how she even managed to get close enough to him to get pregnant.

"That sounds great!" Beth forced a smile." Thank you so much!"

"I'm happy you came along, we need someone like you around here." Deanna stood with a smile." It's refreshing."

"Thank you."

Beth walked over to the front door, with Daryl hot on her heels. She hated that he felt so uncomfortable here knowing that she wasn't, she feared he'd become reckless and cold like he once was. He made so much progress since then, it couldn't all go to waste.

"Don't forget about my party tonight, I expect to see you two there."

"I'll be there." Beth smiled.

Daryl followed Beth out on to the front porch of Deanna's home, he was waiting for a lecture for the way he acted inside. But instead, she grabbed his hand and laced their fingers together. He was confused; he expected so much more from her, it wouldn't be the first time she had to yell at him for being a dick, he didn't know what changed.

Without questioning her motives they walked down the street in silence, each in their own world. Children ran across the road in front of them with their friends, dogs chased after them and tried jumping for their toys. It was almost like they were transformed into another world, and the world out there didn't exist. Like these people didn't have the slightest clue about what happened out there.

"Daryl, Beth."

Both looked over to see two men one standing one sitting on the porch, one of which was Aaron - the recruiter, and the one with his leg propped up was his partner. At least Beth assumed. He walked off his porch and down the walkway to the fence, a smile plastered on his face.

"How are you?" He asked as he leaned against it.

Beth smiled." Good an' you?"

"Just enjoying the weather, it's beautiful out." He shaded his eyes from the sun." Did you just come back from your interview?"

"Yes." Beth looked away. Daryl too.

Aaron's brow furrowed and he looked back to Eric, the other man nodded and he turned back around with the same smile as before."Um, Eric and I were just about to have some lunch. Do you want to join us?"

"Nah we're good." Daryl said, blowing off the invitation as if it were nothing.

"Are you sure? We made too much pasta for two people, we'd be happy to have you over."

Beth nodded." If it's no trouble, we'd love to." She looked over at Daryl and made a gesture with her eyes.

Aaron chuckled." Great." he unlocked the gate.

Beth looked at Daryl and smiled." It'll be good for us, I promise."

"Sure 'bout that?"

"Yes." She replied."Just give it a chance."

...

**Raise your hands, how many want to see the lunch between the four of them? I'm curious if I should write it or not...**

**I said last chapter a lot of stuff is going to happen, but for now, I'm building to that moment where that stuff is going to happen. I'm so excited for you guys to read what I have planned! I don't think I can write fast enough lol **

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter :D**

**Review please! **

**XoXo**


	23. Chapter 23

Spaghetti and Meatballs, that's what was on the lunch menu. And wine. But, Beth was given sprite instead. She didn't mind, it wasn't healthy for her to drink anyways while in the condition she was in. But she watched as Daryl drank, he seemed to enjoy drinking out of a wine glass. And maybe a little too much.

"So, how long have you two been together?"

Beth dabbed her mouth with the napkin." A couple of months."

Aaron smiled." Eric and I have been together for two years, we were going to get married..But then the outbreak happened."

"There's a lot we wanted to do before." Eric said.

It was true, and Beth was one of those people. She wanted to apply for college, possibly study abroad. Or maybe, back pack through Europe with Maggie and her friends. She cut her meatball in half and took a small bite. It sickened her to think that everything she planned, everything she wanted, would never happen.

"Daryl." He cleared his throat." I was speaking with Eric earlier, and I...well we think it'd be best if he keeps off of his feet for a while, and with that being said, I will need another recruiter. I was wondering if you would like the job?"

Daryl swallowed his mouthful of spaghetti and wine." What would I be doin'?"

Aaron breathed a laugh." Uh well, we will be going out in search of people to bring back."

"Why do you need me?" He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand." M'sure somebody else would like the job."

"You are well equipped for the world, you can tell the difference between good from bad. And, we've had our fair share of bad in this town, we don't want to keep it up."

Daryl looked over at Beth then back to his glass, he picked it up and downed the last of the red liquid. He wasn't a wine person, but it was as good as he was getting for now. He shrugged as he set the glass back down on the table." I'unno."

"Well, you can think about it and get back to me, there's really no rush."

"I think it'd be great." Beth cut in.

Daryl side eyed her as he scooped some spaghetti on to his fork.

"Tell him." Eric whispered to Aaron.

Aaron cleared his throat again.

Daryl looked between both men."Tell me what?" he asked eyeing Aaron.

"I have a motorcycle...Well parts of one, I was in the middle of rebuilding it, but then I realized I know nothing about motorcycles." He laughed.

Daryl looked behind him at the garage." In there?" He questioned.

"Mhm. It's a mess honestly."

Daryl scooted his chair out and walked to the door, Aaron stood up and followed him out to the garage. Beth shook her head and continued eating, while wondering about his job. It sounded a little dangerous if she was being honest with herself, going off to find people to bring back, sounded like a suicide mission if she ever heard of one.

"You know, Aaron will have him in the garage all night working on that damn thing." Eric laughed.

Beth smiled." Anything to keep him occupied, he hasn't really felt comfortable since we've been here. I'm hoping this will make him feel like he belongs."

"Well you just got here, it'll take time for him to become adjusted." He shrugged." It took Aaron and I a while, it's all new - the rules, the lifestyle. And when you're not used to it, it could make someone feel overwhelmed."

Beth nodded and looked down at her plate, suddenly feeling as if her eyes were bigger than her stomach.

Daryl walked over to the motorcycle parts laying on an old sheet, all greasy and dirty, yet he wanted to jump right in and start putting it together. He picked up a lug nut and held it between his thumb and finger; rolling it back and forth before laying it back down on the table.

"Got yourself a mess."

Aaron snickered." I'm not a motorcycle enthusiast..I was actually using a book if that tells you anything."

Daryl snorted.

Aaron walked over to the table." If you can fix it, it's yours."

"It's yours."

"I'm never going to find the time to fix it, or at all. It's our welcoming gift to you...and maybe a bribe."

Daryl looked down at the lug nut and sighed, he had to leave Merle's bike back at the prison and it killed him, it was the only link he had left to his brother. But, now he was getting another one. One that was his. He never had anything that was his, his vest wasn't even his. It was Christmas present for Merle from an ex, but when he saw the Angel wings he laughed and tossed it to him. He's had it ever since.

"I'll give it a shot."

"Great." Aaron smiled." You can start whenever."

Daryl grabbed a wrench and walked over to the sheet," I'll start now."

"Oh." Aaron sounded and looked surprised; he chuckled with a shake of the head." I'll leave the master to his work."

The sheet held the engine and other various parts of the bike. He heard the door shut and knelt down, he suddenly felt a sense of ease as he looked on at the mess.

Aaron walked into the dining room with a grin, he saw Beth cleaning up and the grin faded quickly. He hurried over and gently took the plate out of her hands.

"You don't have to clean up." He assured.

Beth blushed." No it's fine really, I don't mind it."

"A woman in your condition shouldn't have to."

"Well...Thank you." She breathed a tiny laugh." Is Daryl in there?"

"Mhm. He wanted to get started immediately." Aaron chuckled." I told him if he could fix it, it was his. I guess he really wants it."

Beth placed a hand on her hip."That was sweet of you."

"I'm not mechanical-ish. I like to write and take pictures instead."

Beth smiled as she brought Aaron another plate." I'm sure Daryl appreciates it, he had one but we had to leave it behind. It was his brothers."

"That's ashame." His eyes flickered up from Beth to the garage door." You can go see him if you'd like." he looked back down meeting her eyes.

"Yeah, I've got to get goin'. Deanna's party is in an hour, have to get ready." She smiled." Are you going?"

Aaron shook his head no." Unfortunately no, Eric needs help around the house so I don't want to stray too far."

She shrugged."Well maybe next time then."

"Yeah, of course."

Beth smiled as she walked to the garage door, she twisted the brass knob and opened it. Only 3 stairs, yet with a dress it was dangerous. She picked the ends of her dress up a little and walked down, Daryl looked up from what he was doing, locked eyes with her then looked back down. Beth frowned and let her dress fall back down.

"Hey." She said as she glided across the garage.

"Hey." He replied.

Beth squatted down next to him.

"It's dirty." He warned."Might wanna stand."

"Oh." She stood and wiped her dress off." I-Is this the bike?"

She expected more, not pieces and big greasy parts.

"It will be in a few days when I'm finished."

"Aaron told me that he's giving it to you." She placed her hand on his shoulder." I think it's sweet."

"Yeah, guess so."

"Are you going with me to the party?"

He shrugged." Dunno if I'll have time."

Hearing those words made her instantly frown again, she wanted him to have something to occupy his time, but not him be so occupied that she hardly ever sees him. She shrugged and leaned down giving his cheek a small peck.

"Well I'm gonna go, Maggie's cutting my hair before the party."

He looked over and gave a nod."I like it long."

Beth smirked."I like change."

"Not like your sister's right?"

"No!" She exclaimed." No, No, No. That is too short, I was talkin' like just under my bra strap, just somethin' that's out of the way."

"Oh." He replied.

Beth rolled her eyes playfully and turned to leave.

"Ya look nice." he said.

Butterflies exploded into her stomach, she turned half way around with a grin."Thank you."

...

Beth walked into the party feeling fresh and cool, Maggie cut off more than she would've liked, but it was hair it would grow back. The party was something like her parents used to have, nicely dressed people, music in the background, and fancy food. She snuck a glance over at Maggie who's green eyes twinkled in every light of the room. She looked lighter too. Almost relieved. But, they all had that look. They were finally in a place with walls, and they didn't have to run anymore.

However, it wasn't much of a party for Beth without Daryl, she wished he would have come along with her, but he was busying himself building the bike to even care.

"Hey." Noah said.

Beth smiled." Hey."

The last time her and Noah held a proper conversation was at Grady, it was eerie to think back on. They'd been so busy with their lives lately, that they had forgotten about their friendship.

"I like the new look." He commented.

She blushed." Thanks. A little shorter than I wanted. But I like it."

Noah smiled." How are you?"

"I'm okay. What about you? I heard you have a girlfriend now?"

"Oh Holly." He blushed." We're just friends...I do like her, but she's a bit older."

"How old?"

He shrugged." She's 21."

Beth giggled." Oh, okay."

It felt great to talk with Noah again that she was grinning ear to ear, their talk was on better terms this time - instead of planning their escape, or talking about their rations of food.

"I'm glad you're with us now, I don't think I'd be able to be happy knowin' you were still there." Beth said as she played with the rim of her cup.

"Me too."

Glenn and Maggie walked over and Beth rolled her eyes, it never failed Maggie was always interrupting something.

"Do you like what I did to her hair?" She asked Glenn.

He adjusted his eyes a bit." Wow!" he exclaimed." Wow, that looks really good."

Beth blushed under the praise, her cheeks felt hotter than a mid summer day. It was the first time she felt pretty since leaving the prison, and gaining a couple facial scars. They were pretty much healed now, but the scars were still very prominent.

"It's a good look for you."

"Thanks." She replied.

Maggie touched Beth's shoulder." Come talk to me."

She nodded and the two wandered off, leaving Noah and Glenn behind. They walked out on to the front porch and over to the railing. Neither sister said anything for a long time, just sitting in the comfortable silence.

But, sitting on the porch reminded Beth of sitting on the porch at the farm, eating ice cream and watching the heat lightening off in the distance. It made her homesick, and she vied for those days.

"Are you and Daryl having problems?"

Beth looked down at her cup." That depends on what you mean by that?"

"Glenn said you two were arguing the other day, and he's not here now...I just wanna get the facts before I start assuming."

She sighed." I don't know Maggie, he doesn't like it here and it's making everything between us so awkward."

"Have you tried talking to him?"

"Plenty of times. Deanna even tried, but, he's closed up again. And I'm scared I won't get through to him this time." She turned away and leaned against the column.

"Maybe you should just let him try to get used to it, stop trying to help him, just wait and see."

"I know." She nodded." I just promised him that'd I'd help him out every once and a while."

"When?" Maggie asked curiously.

"At the prison. It was after the run, and he told us about the walkers. He started talking about how Tyreese almost died, and it was gonna be his fault just like it was his fault about Zach." She sighed and looked down." I told him it wasn't, that he was a good man and mistakes happen, you just learn from them and move on."

"Good advice." Maggie smiled." Sounds like Daddy."

Beth offered a smile as the memory of her Father flash through her mind, his smile engulfing her memory and his scent of musk, the outdoors and cigars filled her nostrils. She felt herself growing emotional and so she looked down at the bushes.

"He would've liked it here."

"Yeah." A quiet laugh escaped Maggie's lips." He would enjoy farming and bossing us all around."

"Coming back home to cooked food, talkin' about his day." Beth looked over at Maggie and sighed." I wish he would've gotten that opportunity to know that there are decent people left, that we're safe...Or to see the baby."

Maggie frowned." He's here on some level, he'll always be with us. But, he's with Mom and Shawn now, he's happy."

Beth nodded and wiped a single tear away." We better go back inside, we're bringing down the party."

Even though she knew it was true, that her Daddy was happy and in peace, she still wanted him physically here. It really wasn't the same without him. Maybe it was selfish of her to think that, but, he went before his time, he still had a lot of living left to do. A lot of things he should be seeing.

Daryl stood outside by a tree, watching as Maggie and Beth talked on the porch. He was going to go over, but they looked like they were having a moment so he waited instead. He watched the people through the window, laughing, drinking out of thin champagne glasses, eating little crackers, mingling with others. Stuff that he didn't feel comfortable doing, or even looked right doing.

He watched as Beth and Maggie walked back inside, he caught a glimpse of her hair and swallowed. She was different now that she was back in civilization. Different in a sense that he could never compare. He _was _as outdoor cat trying to be an indoor cat, and it just never worked out that way. He looked down at his cigarette's and decided then and there that he'd take Aaron up on his offer, staying behind walls for too long and watching everyone change was making him cringe. He needed this job, it would do him some good.

...

**So we're moving along quite nicely actually, next chapter will be a time jump. And I would say in a few chapters like 3 or 4, thing's will start hitting the fan. Cause they always do *evil eyes* **

**Like I said before, Daryl will have a rough time adjusting to the place and that won't go away any time soon. He's not mad at Beth either, he just doesn't understand why she want's to change. **

**Hope you all enjoyed the lunch between the four, I enjoyed writing it very much! **

**Feedback is appreciated. I'm hoping to get a lot, I need the motivation sometimes (but don't we all?) Also don't be afraid to drop a review, I love reading what you all have to say!**

**XoXo**


	24. Chapter 24

The wind was whipping as he barreled down the road; his body vibrating throughout. It was something he missed, being on the open road with just his thoughts and nature surrounding him.

It was the first run with his new bike, the welcoming gift from Aaron and Eric. It took two months to build, since the few parts he needed weren't easy to obtain anymore. But he was determined to finish the project. He was glad when he finished, riding in the car was beginning to get to him.

Aaron honked the horn from behind, and Daryl automatically pulled to the side of the road. It was their signal since they had no other way of contacting each other. He got off the bike and took his sunglasses off.

"We're running low on gas." Aaron informed, as he jogged over."We're pretty close, I think we could manage on foot."

Daryl nodded."Alright."

Daryl didn't mind Aaron, he was a good guy and meant well. At first, he wasn't too keen on him, because he seemed to pop up out of thin air. But he proved himself to the group, and he was a good friend.

As they trudged through the woods, they were mostly silent. Aaron was following his map, while Daryl watched the trail - looking for any tracks, dead or alive. The last thing they needed was to be surprised.

Aaron came to a stop near the wood line, and Daryl stopped too and stared through the chain link. Walkers roamed a parking lot of a factory, filled with trailers backed up to a loading dock. Aaron crouched over near the fence and started cutting.

"What're we gonna do?"

"There's food in those trailers." Aaron informed."I figure we could use some."

Daryl pulled back the chain link, as Aaron climbed through, and once on the other side he held the fence for Daryl.

"Think they'll notice us?" Aaron asked, nodding towards the walkers.

"Probably." Daryl replied dryly.

He started walking towards the loading dock, with Aaron following close behind. Daryl hoisted himself up on the ledge and waited for Aaron to do the same. He looked out across the empty parking lot, watching the walkers roam around completely oblivious to them.

"They're gonna hear us." Aaron whispered.

"Best make it a quick trip then." Daryl advised."Can't waste any ammo."

"Right."

They walked over to a trailer and Daryl knelt down, he jiggled the handle of the door but it was locked. Aaron tapped Daryl on the shoulder with the lock cutter, he turned and nodded his thanks as he took the heavy object. He quickly made use of the cutters and pulled the door up, something snapped just above them and all the doors to each trailer sprung open. Daryl and Aaron jumped back as walkers stumbled out.

Daryl grabbed Aaron's arm and jumped off the ledge, they ran in between the two trucks as the walkers followed after them. Both Daryl and Aaron ducked under a trailer and scooted out the other side. Daryl immediately spotted a chain and wrapped it around his hand, he swung the rusted metal against three walkers, and the three walkers fell to the ground; their heads split wide open.

"The car!" Daryl yelled."Come on!"

They sprinted towards the car, which seemed to appear out of nowhere. Both frantically jumped inside and watched as the walkers swarmed them. Daryl, with a shaky hand, grabbed a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and pulled out his last cigarette. If he was about to die, he wanted to die doing what he loved. He turned to Aaron and watched as horror spread across his face.

"Why'd ya bring us back?" He asked.

Aaron glanced over."What?"

Daryl looked down at his zippo lighter."Why'd you bring us back? You coulda left us for dead."

He nodded."You all are good people, you deserved better than what you were getting."

"We coulda been bad."

"But you aren't." Aaron retorted.

Daryl rested his knee against the door, as he smoked his cigarette. He may of been cool on the outside, but on the inside he was out of options. He momentarily thought about how'd they get out, and just the thought of it gave him chills. One of them would have to die, or both of them would die. Either way, someone was dying. Daryl mushed his cigarette out on the dashboard and grabbed his knife.

"W-What're you doing?" Aaron stuttered.

"I'll lead 'em away, you get back to the cars."

He shook his head."You can't, what about Beth? The baby?"

He stared at the steering wheel."She's better off without me, I ain't good for her."

"I'm not one to involve myself in other people's problems, but what about the baby? That child will need a father."

Daryl stayed silent. Truth was, he didn't think he could do it. And he didn't think the baby should be subjected to such a loser like him, it was better off not knowing who he was.

"I'll do it." Aaron said."You have so much to live for."

"No." Daryl shook his head."We do it together."

Before they could do anything, walkers begun dropping around the car. Daryl saw a quick exit and jumped out of the car, he quickly raised his bow and shot an arrow through a walker. It fell to the ground with a thud. He shot another one through the neck, and smashed his bow into it's head.

He stood over his kills; panting. He looked up and saw a man standing amidst the dead corpses holding a large stick...a stick. Daryl ripped an arrow from a walker, and slowly approached the man.

Aaron cautiously followed after Daryl. The man that stood before the walkers, didn't even seem phased by what he did - not even an ounce.

"Who are you?" Daryl asked.

"Morgan."

He glanced over at Aaron, then to Morgan."Why'd you do that?"

"Because all life is precious."

Daryl nodded and bowed his head. Flashes of Beth crossed before him, and he suddenly wanted to see her again.

"Uh, thank you for helping us." Aaron piped up."If you'd like to come back with us, we have a community. We have houses and food for everyone."

"No, thank you" Morgan politely declined."But you could help me, maybe direct me another route. I'm not all that good with directions." He handed Daryl the map.

Daryl took the map and his brow furrowed, as some writing came into view.

_Sorry for being an asshole, come to Washington._

_The new world is gonna need Rick Grimes._

* * *

Beth waited in their room for Daryl to come back, but her anxiety was getting the best of her. She paced the room, back and forth, biting her nails down to nothing. It was nearing 8, he should be home by now. There was a quiet knock on the door, before it opened and Maggie poked her head in.

"Hey, are you coming to the meeting?"

She shrugged."I guess."

"You don't have too, but I was hoping you'd come."

She nodded and walked over to her bed to retrieve her flannel."Maggie."

"Hmm?" The brunette turned around.

"Do you think Daryl's okay? I mean, it's been hours since he's been gone."

Maggie laid a gentle hand on Beth's shoulder."He's fine, Beth."

"I know, I just... We got in a fight this morning, and I said some things to him." She admitted with a frown."He was bein' a jackass and I got pissed off at him."

"Most guys are jackasses." She breathed a laugh, hoping to lighten the mood a bit.

"Yeah well, I know why he's bein' a jackass." She inhaled sharply."It's cause of the baby and me. It didn't hit him until last month sometime, when I started to show. Ever since then, he's been really distant."

"Do you want me to talk to him?"

Beth shook her head."No, it'll be fine. I have faith that he'll come around."

Maggie kissed Beth's head."You have more patience than me."

She nodded and grabbed her knife off the dresser."We should get going, don't wanna be late."

Maggie sighed and followed after her.

Once outside Beth zipped up her jacket, as she made her way to the few people gathered around Deanna's house. Maggie caught up with Beth, but she didn't look at her. She wasn't exactly sure why she was mad, maybe she was just overly concerned about Daryl.

When they made it to the group of people, a few faces were missing. Deanna stepped forward and cleared her throat.

"We need to discuss what happened yesterday."

"We should wait until he and the others get back." Maggie urged.

Deanna shook her head."No, we'll talk now." She looked between Maggie and Beth, before turning to the rest."Yesterday, what Rick did was unacceptable - uncalled for. That is not who we are."

"We can work it out." Carol said.

"We have too." Maggie agreed."We'll figure something out."

"He pointed a gun at us." She reminded.

"He was upset."

Reg cleared his throat."Rick is a threat."

"He isn't!" Carol insisted.

Suddenly, a hush fell over the group of people, as Rick emerged stained with blood and carrying a walker. Everyone, Maggie and Beth included, stared in shock. He tossed the walker to the ground, and used his arm to wipe his face.

"There wasn't any guards at the gate." He inched closer to the group."Walkers found their way in. They will always find their way in, doesn't matter if they're dead or alive. They want in because they want what's on the other side."

Beth looked down at her shoes. Maggie reached down and gripped Beth's hand.

"We either fight or die, there's no in between." He looked at Deanna and Reg."We will survive, and I'll make damn sure of it."

"You're not one of us!" A drunken Pete screamed, as he stumbled into the meeting armed with Michonne's katana.

Maggie pulled Beth back away from the group, as Pete neared Rick waving the katana everywhere.

"Pete." Reg began."Pete, go home you're drunk."

"I'm...I'm not drunk old man!" He slurred, then turned back to Rick - glaring."You're no good for this town."

"Pete." Reg tried grabbing at his arm. Pete spun around and slashed his throat.

Abraham tackled Pete to the ground, knocking the katana off to the side. Deanna collapsed to the ground crying, as she held a dying Reg in her arms.

"This is him!" Pete yelled.

"What're you talking about, asshole!?" Abraham demanded."You just killed someone!"

"It's him." He repeated."It's him."

Deanna sobbed as she lowered her head to Reg's.

He was gone.

Beth couldn't quite comprehend what exactly was happening, because it was happening so fast. And before she had a chance to process it all, Rick walked over to Pete and shot him without any hesitation. She jumped and covered her mouth with her hand.

Behind him the gate opened, and Daryl, Aaron and another man appeared. He said something and it caught Rick's attention, enough for him to snap out of his trance and face the three. Daryl moved around Rick and the massacre, and hurried over to Beth.

When he got to her he wrapped his arms around her, and she buried her head in his chest. She instantly felt safe in his arms, as they tightened around her.

"C'mon." Daryl grabbed her hand and started leading her away.

"What's happening?"

He didn't answer, he just kept walking.

She tugged on his arm."Daryl, stop."

He stopped and turned around.

"What's happening?" She asked again, her voice breaking.

He sighed."I dunno, Beth."

She sniffled and stomped her foot."Why does this keep happening to us?"

He pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head."We'll make it work."

"We have too." She replied, pulling away and staring up at him."I don't wanna keep running."

"We won't." He said matter of fact."We'll make it work."

* * *

**It's been a year too long!**

**There's not much else to say, except that I couldn't leave this story hanging in the wind. So I'm going to try and complete it, because it deserves an ending. **

**Hope you enjoyed :)**

**Xoxo**


	25. Chapter 25

After that night there was a notable shift in the air, the community seemed on edge and less playful like it'd previously been. Everyone was still reeling from the events, Deanna in particular, was still grieving the loss of her son and now her husband. It seemed like a never ending cycle of death. If you were too happy for too long, then something would happen, reminding you of how unsafe you truly were.

Beth was beginning to feel the affects. She was constantly looking over her shoulder, or worrying when she shouldn't be. Daryl tried his hardest to assure her that she was okay, but he knew as anyone, that lying only went so far. But he tried, at least, to make her feel comfortable and safe, considering the amount of stress she was already under.

They were finding out what the sex of their baby was going to be, and even as joyous as it should be, Beth feared that it would be overshadowed by her worrying. Apart of her was thrilled to know if it was a boy or girl, but another part of her wasn't. Seeing her baby and knowing if it was a he or she, would only make her situation real. Up until recently, the idea of having a baby didn't sink in. She was beginning to know what Daryl was feeling for the first five months, and was still probably feeling.

As she rifled through the bin of clothes, taking inventory of everything, she couldn't help but reason with herself. She deserved to know what the baby was, God forbid something happened and she never know. Daryl deserved to know as well, Hell, he deserved the world and then some. They both did.

The door behind her opened and she glanced over her shoulder, to see Daryl shrugging his bow off and laying it on the counter. He knelt down beside her and nudged her with his arm, his lips quirking into a faint smile. Beth's cheeks flushed hot and her lips too, curled into a small smile.

"Hi."

"Find anything good?" He asked, peering into the bin.

She shrugged."Just some sweaters, and a pair of jeans that should fit me."

He nodded and pulled out a flannel, inspecting it carefully, while Beth watched him; very much intrigued.

"What're you doing?"

"Lookin' for something new, ya mind?"

She snorted a laugh."No, it's just...Nevermind."

"It's just nevermind what?" He mocked her, nudging her arm again.

"You looked cute, the way you were lookin' at it."

He blushed and looked down at the bin, rifling around inside before finding some socks.

"Are you coming to my appointment today?"

"Mhm.." He started quickly."Wouldn't miss it."

"You mean that?"

He turned to her, looking as if she was a crazy person. He snorted and stood up, walking over to another bin across the room.

"Course I do, Beth. Why ya askin' such shit?"

She shrugged."I worry sometimes, I guess."

"Well stop. Course I care, you're my girl..." He froze as the words spewed out of his mouth, he hadn't planned on saying it. He planned to eventually, but he never found the time, or the courage. Apparently now was the time.

"I-I am?"

He sighed and looked down at his small pile of clothes."Mhm."

She smiled and turned back to the bin, sorting out things that were too small and too big for her. They were both silent as they sorted through the bins, not mentioning what Daryl had just said. It felt better that way, too many questions would ruin any kind of sentimental moment they were having. And they usually never have those kind of moments, not even when they were in their own bedroom. It was bittersweet.

* * *

After Beth sorted through some winter clothes, she took them to the laundry room to be washed. Daryl handed over his clothes before going back to work, he just wanted to see Beth on his lunch break. They only had two washers and dryers, but they could only use one at a time to conserve energy and water. Luckily Beth was the only one in the laundry room today.

As she stuffed their clothes in the washer and added some detergent, the door to the room opened and Maggie came through. She didn't have any laundry, so this had to be a social call.

"Hey."

Beth smiled."Hey stranger."

Maggie blushed and placed a hand on her shoulder, giving a small squeeze."Sorry, I've been busy."

"It's fine." She replied, even though she really wished Maggie would come around more."I've been busy myself, readin' up on my books and straightening up for the baby."

"It's so hard to believe." She leaned against the unoccupied washer."I never thought you'd be having a baby before me."

Beth giggled."Yeah the one time I do have sex I get pregnant. You and Glenn have been havin' sex for years and nothing."

Maggie snorted and nudged her arm."Hey now!"

Beth hopped up on the counter opposite of Maggie and sighed."I think we can finally start something here. We can finally pick up the pieces and try again."

"I hope so."

"You have to believe, Maggie. I know it's hard, but, we have so much to live for if we do it right. These people have to know the threat is real, they can't be sheltered the rest of their lives."

"I know." She nodded, her lips quirking up into a grin."I can see us five years from now. Little Daryl's and Glenn's running around."

Beth snorted a laugh."Oh God, that'll be fun."

Maggie walked over, closing the gap between them. She placed a hand on Beth's shoulder and leaned in pressing a kiss to Beth's cheek. Beth wrapped her arms around Maggie's neck, embracing her older sister much like she used to. She hadn't really felt the need to in a while, but, now she felt it was right. After what happened a few nights ago, she felt that they both needed a hug.

When they parted Maggie placed her hand on Beth's belly, giving a firm rub to her growing bump. Beth giggled and placed her hand over hers.

"When do you find out?"

"Today. Daryl's comin' to the appointment." Beth smiled.

"Good. I don't wanna have to kick his ass."

"Maggie." Beth playfully shoved at her arm.

"What? I should've kicked his ass when I found out he knocked you up!"

Beth rolled her eyes."Well I had a part in that too, it wasn't all him."

"I know." She exhaled a breath."It's weird knowing you're an adult now."

When they were at the farm, Beth was 16, far from an adult. When they got to the prison she was on the brink of 18, almost an adult, but not yet an adult. And when they brought the people from Woodbury to live with them, she was finally 18, very much an adult. It didn't matter much anymore, but it did to Beth.

However, Maggie and Hershel still viewed her as a child, even though she was taking care of a baby and had been since infancy. She was far from a child in her eyes, but understood where they came from.

"I'm sure Daddy would have a hard time believing it too."

Maggie smiled."He would, but he'd get over it."

"You think?"

"Yeah." Maggie shook her head."I think he'd be happy knowing you were safe and taken care of."

"I think he'd be happy knowin' I was with Daryl."

"After the initial shock, yeah." She snickered.

Beth playfully rolled her eyes."Help me sort out these clothes, would ya?"

* * *

After Beth finished the laundry, Maggie helped her carry the clean clothes back to the house. Beth was growing more and more nervous about the ultrasound, wondering if the baby was okay or even still alive. She felt some flutters here and there, but nothing solid to prove it was still alive in a while. She hadn't expressed her concern to Daryl, because he seemed to be finally over that hurdle in his life, the one where he was afraid to be happy and let his guard down. She didn't want to give him a reason to build his walls back up.

Maggie helped Beth fold the laundry and put them in the dresser, before they both walked into the kitchen for a snack. Beth grabbed a granola bar and saw Maggie out, just as Daryl walked up the porch. He and Maggie exchanged glances before Beth wrapped her arms around his neck, planting a firm kiss on his lips.

"I missed you." She giggled.

He faintly smiled."You're in a good mood."

"I got a lot done today. I did the laundry, I cleaned the kitchen and even made a little dinner...er, sorta. We're on rations again, so I couldn't do anything special."

"S'fine." He waved his hand.

"I hope you got enough warm clothes out of that bin?" She asked, popping a piece of granola in her mouth.

He nodded."Mhm. Finally got a few pair of underwear."

She giggled."Ew! You've been goin' commando?"

"Yeah what's it to ya?" He raised a brow."S'how it's supposed to be, ya know?"

She rolled her eyes and held out her hand."Want some?"

"Nah, ain't hungry."

"Okay...Oh! we're supposed to meet John at 3:30." Beth reminded.

"Who's that?"

"The Doctor. He helped Pete out a lot, and now he's taken over full time. Him and Denise, actually."

He nodded and sat down on the couch."Carl think's it's a boy."

Beth smiled."Yeah?"

"Rick too. Not Glenn an' Eugene, they think it's a girl."

"So everyone is polling on what the baby is, huh?" She mused.

He nodded."S'all they talked about today."

"And what do you think?"

He shrugged."I'unno, guess if it's healthy I don't care."

It shouldn't of surprised her much, but it did, and very much. She expected him to at least give an idea of what it was, even if he just simply agreed with Glenn and Eugene. But maybe he was telling the truth, maybe he really just wanted the baby to be healthy. Beth did too, probably more than anything, but it was fun to guess the gender. After all, they didn't have much to do these days.

"We should go soon." She announced.

He nodded, breaking his concentration."Hm, alright."

As she stood up she leaned over and pecked his lips, this time feeling his lips awaken for the short time their lips were together. He was always so stiff when she made the first move, but give him moonshine and a secluded house all to their selves, and he was as confident as the next man.

* * *

Beth sat nervously on the examining table, watching as John rubbed the wand over her stomach. Daryl was sitting next to her, holding her hand and chewing on his thumb. He didn't admit it, but he _was_ nervous. She could see it in his eyes on the way over, and the way he fidgeted as they waited for the Doctor.

When they heard the heartbeat, Daryl stared at the monitor in awe, then dropped his head against Beth's leg. She placed her hand on his head and rubbed soothing circles.

"Would you like to know the sex?" John asked.

"Yes we would!" Beth exclaimed.

Daryl lifted his head and squinted his eyes at the screen, his own creation staring back at him. He grabbed Beth's hand again and swallowed thickly.

John smiled."Hmm, looks like a little girl."

"Really?" Beth gasped.

"Yes. Congratulations."

Beth turned to Daryl and brushed his hair back, he faintly smiled and placed a kiss on the back of her hand. John handed Beth a wash cloth and she began wiping her stomach clean. He handed Daryl the sonogram and he took it gingerly, biting his lip as he stared at his daughter. Beth moved to the edge of the table, and touched his shoulder.

"You okay?"

He nodded."Mhm."

She leaned down and kissed the side of his head."Our daughter."

It didn't shock Daryl as much as he thought it would, he was actually glad it was over. Not that seeing his daughter was a drag, but the whole process made him nervous. He was glad it was a girl though, he wouldn't know how to raise a son. At least Beth would be a good role model for their daughter. He on the other hand, he wasn't sure if he'd be a good role model. Or a good Dad for that matter.

He didn't have much to go on by, and he never was confident about being a man. Merle didn't help much either, always putting him down whenever he felt like it. His Granddad wasn't much better than his Dad, but at least he didn't beat him.

As they walked into the house, Beth took the sonogram and proudly hung it on the fridge. Daryl walked in and leaned against the counter, watching as she grabbed a jar of peanut butter from the cabinet. She used her finger to scoop some out and Daryl snorted, she glanced up with a blush.

"What?"

"Use a spoon."

She laughed and nudged him."You're the one to talk!"

"I use my mouth, not my hands."

"Oh please." She sat beside him."I've seen you eat plenty of things with your hands."

He raised a brow, eyeing her.

"Daryl." She scolded playfully.

He snickered and walked over to the fridge, pulling out a bottle of water and taking a much needed sip. He sat the bottle in front of Beth and placed his hand on the small of her back, her skin pimpled as she turned to see what he was doing. He cupped her face with both hands and kissed her lips. It took her by surprise, especially when his tongue slipped into her mouth.

She didn't know why he was kissing her, was it the excitement of the day? Or was it just time? Anyway, she wasn't really contemplating on why anymore, she was too busy satisfying her overdue needs.

But it was cut all too short, when Daryl pulled away panting heavily. She placed her hands on his chest, and he placed his hands over hers and brought them up to his mouth.

"What was that for?" Beth panted.

He looked down and shrugged."I felt like it."

She smiled and stood up, wrapping her arms around his neck. His arms slowly encircled hers and his head dropped down on to her forehead. She closed her eyes as she slowly rubbed his back.

"Good, cause I liked it." She smiled.

Daryl grunted."Me too."

* * *

**It's a girl! Yay :D**

**Daryl is getting comfortable now, which I'm sure Beth will enjoy a lot more! I'm sure we will too, ha!**

**Xoxo**


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